Riddled
by Killing Curse Eyes
Summary: On a class trip to London Harriet Lily Potter found a little black book lying on the ground, and suddenly, destiny shifted. Fem!Harry Diary!Tom Eventual TMR/HP Currently in year 5.
1. The Diary of TM Riddle

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Summary: On a class trip to London Harriet Lily Potter found a little black book lying on the ground, and suddenly, destiny shifted.

Pairing: Diary!Tom/Fem!Harry

Chapter one: The Diary of T. M. Riddle

-o-

Harriet Potter walked down the side walk in London behind her classmates with her head down. They were there on a mandatory field trip that the Dursleys couldn't prevent her from going on. Harriet, or Harry as she preferred to be called, was actually having a good time for once, despite being forced to walk at the back of the class without a partner like everyone else. It was intended to be humiliating, but Harry preferred things this way. No partner meant no one to pick on her, no one to pull her hair, no one to call her names, no one to spill things on her. She enjoyed being alone. It was the way she had always been, and, she thought bitterly, the way she was likely to always be if the Dursleys had any say.

Looking up, she realized she had started to lag behind, walking quickly to catch up, she saw a black book lying on the ground out of the corner of her eye. Harry figured she was already behind enough, it wouldn't hurt to stop and pick it up. And so she did, shoving it in her backpack while running to catch up to her classmates.

This small moment changed things irrevocably. Had she not picked it up, some minutes later when a blond man with an ugly sneer on his face would have realized he'd dropped it and begun retracing his steps and found it just outside of a dingy pub called The Leaky Cauldron. However this was not to be. And so, the fate of the Wizarding World changed forever.

-x-

It wasn't until later in her cupboard under the stairs that Harry had the chance to examine her find. Using a torch she had stolen from Dudley's second bedroom, she eagerly took in the notebook. The black book's cover was worn, but appeared to be expensive.

Turning it over, she saw the printed name of a newsagents in Vauxhall Road, London and a date from roughly fifty years ago.

"Interesting. Must be an old journal of someone's. Should provide some entertainment," she mumbled to herself.

She opened it and saw the first page had nothing written, except for the name "T. M. Riddle" in smudged ink. Turning the page, she saw it was blank. Flipping through the rest of the pages, the black haired girl saw they were also blank.

"How boring. Might as well use it for myself though." She decided.

Digging through her blankets, she pulled out a worn down pencil.

_My name is Harriet Lily Potter and I am 9 years old._ She wrote. _I have shoulder length black hair that gets too messy to grow out any further, even though I'd love to have longer hair. If I grow it any longer, it turns into a rat's nest. I have green eyes and a lightning bolt scar on my forehead. I'm told by my aunt that I got it in the car crash my parents died in. The crash was my dad's fault, according to her. He was driving drunk._

Harry paused in thought. She wasn't sure if she believed that or not, though whether her parents had been sober or not, she wished they'd been more careful. Maybe if they had been she wouldn't have ended up living with her fat uncle, Vernon, her horse faced aunt, Petunia, and their hell spawn, Dudley. While she pondered this, she didn't notice the paragraph she'd written begin to fade into blankness. When she looked again, she blanched at the empty page.

"What on Earth...?" she muttered. "Aunt Petunia would definitely consider this something freakish."

Maybe this diary belonged to someone like her. A freak. Maybe there were more freaks than just her and her deceased parents.

_I am a freak._ She wrote and then waited. Sure enough, her messy scrawl soon faded from the page. However, instead of remaining blank, words in an elegant script faded in.

_Why do you say that?_ The diary asked

_My Aunt Petunia told me I'm one._ She wrote back hesitantly. _I make freaky things happen. Once when the girls at school were chasing me I jumped and ended up on the school roof. Another time my Aunt tried to cut my hair really short so it wouldn't be so "unsightly" but it grew back to its normal length over night._

_You are not a freak, Harriet. From the sounds of things, you're a witch._

_That's not very nice to say._ Harry frowned.

_On the contrary, dear Harriet. It is the utmost compliment. You can do magic._

_Magic? _She asked._ Is that what this is? This diary I mean?_

_Yes._ The diary wrote back. _I am a construct of magic. My name Is Tom Riddle. It's a pleasure to finally meet someone after all this time. May I ask how you came across my diary?_

_I was on a field trip,_ the jade eyed girl responded. _And I saw your diary lying on the ground. I was curious, so I picked it up. I thought it might belong to one of my classmates. That maybe it held their secrets that I could use to get them to leave me alone._

_I see. A very good plan. _Wrote Tom. _A shame that it didn't work out. Do your classmates often harass you?_

_Yes. They like to chase after me and throw things at me. If they catch me they like to dump their juice and water on me, or take me to the bathroom and dunk my head in the toilet._

_I'm sorry you have to experience that, Harriet. The children in the orphanage where I grew up were cruel to me as well._

_Really? Why? You grew up in an orphanage? You're a person? Not just a diary?_

_Because they knew I was different. They didn't like that. Muggles don't like us. They're jealous of us. They fear us. I am indeed a person. I am trapped inside this diary by my own will._

_Muggles?_ Harry asked. It was a strange word. _And why would you do that?_

_Non-magical people,_ explained Tom. _And my reasons are my own. It is fortunate you found me. I was getting lonely. I hope I'm able to help you, dear Harriet._

_Oh. I see... Sorry for asking. Just Harry is fine, by the way._

_I prefer Harriet, my dear. Harry... just doesn't seem to do you justice._

Harry blushed, feeling strangely flattered by the diary's words and desire to help her. Maybe it—he – would. Maybe now she wouldn't be alone any more.

She was about to respond when a knock at her cupboard door forced her to slam the diary shut and hide it underneath her blankets.

"Girl!" Her aunt's voice screeched. "Get out and make supper. Diddy-Darling is getting hungry!"

"Yes, Aunt Petunia." Harry moaned.

"Watch your tone, girl. I will not have you disrespect me after everything I've done for you." Petunia snapped at her niece.

"Sorry, Aunt Petunia." She hastened to apologize, not wanting to get on her aunt's bad side. While things were never pleasant for her, per se, things could always be worse.

Harry did almost all the chores around the house. She cooked, she cleaned, she gardened. She wouldn't say she was abused... Neglected emotionally? Yes. For sure. Minor physical neglect? Perhaps. But she wasn't abused. Her aunt and uncle never hit her, nor did her cousin. No one touched her like _that_ either. She got enough to eat, if only barely. She'd occasionally miss a meal as punishment, and sometimes only received bread, water and a multivitamin if she'd recently done anything freaky. Her clothes... they were second hand from the thrift shop, and her aunt often bought them several sizes too big so they'd last as long as possible. It was far from a happy life. But as her aunt and uncle reminded her, she had to be grateful they even took her in. That they didn't send her to an orphanage. So many children and families had it much worse, they reminded her.

That's not to say she wasn't bitter about it. But she knew there was nothing she could do. You can't _make_ people love you and care about you.

-x-

Later that night Harry was back in her cupboard after finally completing all the chores her aunt and uncle wanted her to do. She groped around for her torch and turned it on. She pulled out Tom's diary, grabbed her pencil and began to write.

_Sorry I disappeared suddenly Tom. Aunt Petunia made me cook dinner and then clean house. _She wrote.

_It's alright,_ wrote Tom._ I assumed it was your relatives, Harriet. Tell me how they treat you._

And so she did. She told him everything. She told him all about herself. She poured her heart into him. And he grew stronger.

In return he told her about the orphanage. How the other children treated him. How the adults did. How eventually, he learned to use his magic to intimidate them and get his revenge.

_Can you teach me? _Harry inquired.

_Yes. But it will be difficult._ He answered. _The earlier you start the better. It is rather simple, though difficult to achieve. You simply have to want something bad__ly__ enough. That is how accidental magic works. You want something. You wanted to get away from the girls chasing you. You wanted your hair to be a certain length. You have to want, with all your being, something specific. I suggest you make the house shake. Simply think about how badly you want it to. Think about nothing else. Focus on it entirely. Want it with your entire being, and it will happen._

_That's it?_ She asked. _That simple?_

_Yes, but it will be difficult. Your magic best responds when you aren't trying to use it. Wandless magic is very difficult to use consciously. _Explained Tom.

_Why?_

_I don't know. All I know is that as you get older and your magic develops it will get harder to control without a wand. You're almost too old to have a good chance of using it consciously._

_But you think I can do it, right?_ Harry bit her lip. She wanted to scare her family. She wanted to do fewer chores. She wanted a room. She wanted clothes that fit.

_Yes, Harriet. I think you will. Just practice._

And so she did.

-x-

It took her nearly a month of trying to get the house to shake to make any progress. Tom said she was doing well, but she wasn't sure. She giggled at her relatives (for that's what they were, not family, as Tom said) reactions to the house suddenly shaking. It took two months to be able to make it shake within a few minutes of wanting it, and Tom finally felt she was ready to demand a room of her own.

Harry decided the best time to broach the subject to her relatives was Sunday morning after she had finished making breakfast.

"Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon, I'd like to speak to you about something, please." Harry said in her most formal and polite voice.

"What is it girl?"

"I want Dudley's second bedroom." The jade-eyed girl demanded.

"Ha! Why would we give it to you, you ungrateful brat? You have a place to sleep, clothes on your back, food on your plate..." Her uncle laughed.

Harriet took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She focused on what she wanted. She wanted the house to shake. She wanted to scare her relatives. She wanted nothing more than for the house to shake. It was all she desired. She needed it. More than anything.

And it worked. Within the minute the house started to shake.

"Give me Dudley's second room." She demanded, her eyes green ice as she glared at her relatives.

"Wh- stop that! You freak! You're doing this aren't you?" demanded Vernon, his face puce and his voice rough.

"Not until you give me Dudley's second bedroom." She replied, her voice firm.

"Don't be ridiculous- you stop that or it's the cupboard for a week with only bread and water!" her aunt threatened in a shrill voice.

"No! Give. Me. Dudley's. Second. Room." As she spoke, her temper rose. This wasn't working.

A vase shattered. Her magic was responding more than she'd anticipated.

"You ungrateful freak! How dare you do this to us after all we've done for you!" screamed Vernon.

"Give it to me!" Harry shrieked, and the china in the sink shattered.

"Mum! Dad! Just give it to her! Make it stop!" whimpered Dudley.

"No Didddy-dums, we can't give in to the freak-" Petunia was cut off by the rest of the china in the cupboards shattering.

"Give it to me or I'll destroy the entire house!" Harry roared, beyond frustrated. The ceiling cracked. At the rate things were going it wouldn't be long until they gave in. She could feel it.

"Fine! Fine! You can have his second bedroom!" Growled her whale of an uncle. "Just stop this freakish nonsense before you destroy the house!"

"With pleasure." And just like that, the shaking and breaking stopped. She had her room. And it was all thanks to Tom. Boy, would she enjoy it.

-o-

AN: Okay~ This is going to be my first multi-chaptered fic. The title is tentative until I think of a better one. Same for the summary. Feel free to make suggestions.

A few things you should know- I have an explanation for a lot of things that happen that don't make it into the fic. Like why Lucius had the diary with him in London. He was going to put it in Gringotts because he was anticipating the aurors searching his manor. If something comes up and you wonder why it happened but it's not explained, feel free to ask in a review. Second of all, I do have up to x-mas planned out, and some things for well beyond that. Most importantly, I have depression. Because of that, I am currently not working or going to school, so I have plenty of time to write. Unfortunately, it means I'm highly unpredictable when it comes to motivation. Right now I'm highly motivated, but that can change. Feedback (reviews, favs, follows) will help motivate me (read: guilt me), but please don't think I'm begging for reviews. I myself am a shitty reviewer.

I appreciate constructive criticism. If you don't like it, tell me why and tell me what you think would fix it.

Hopefully chapter will be longer than this one.

Best,

KCE

October 16 2015:

AN: I decided that since I've forgotten a lot of little details, that I may as well go through and edit the story. There may be some small changes that previous readers might notice, but if I change anything important I'll mention it in the latest chapter. Mostly I'll just be fixing errors.


	2. A Lesson in Magic

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 2: A Lesson in Magic

-o-

_Tom, you know a lot about magic. Where did you learn it all?_ Wrote Harriet one evening in her new room. It was definitely an improvement on the cupboard. Though the smallest in the house, it still fit a small bed, a night stand, a wardrobe and a small desk. Most of Dudley's junk had since been moved out of the room, but some small things like books and misplaced army men without legs still lingered.

_I learned most of what I know about wandless magic in my youth. The more complex magic I was taught at Hogwarts, a school for witchcraft and wizardry. _Tom replied, his writing seeming more excited as he wrote about Hogwarts.

_Hogwarts? _Harry snorted. A ridiculous name. She told Tom as much.

_Perhaps, but it is one of the best schools for magic. The summer of your 11__th__ year you should receive a letter from Hogwarts inviting you to attend._

_Really? What kind of things do they teach there?_ Her scrawl was messy with her excitement. Imagine, her attending a school for _magic_ of all things. It sounded beyond belief, but felt right at the same time. She wasn't a freak. She was a witch. And she would get to meet other witches and wizards in just over a year.

_The teach many things,_ Tom replied. _Subjects like charms, transfiguration, potions, herbology, astronomy, history, and arithmancy. But the best class is __Defence__ Against the Dark Arts. Of course, Hogwarts does have its flaws. It offers an extremely biased education._

Harry was astounded. That sounded like a lot to learn. Did they have normal subjects too? Like maths, English and science?

_Biased? Against what? _She inquired curiously.

_So called "dark" magic._ He replied swiftly. _It's all nonsense. There's no such thing. Literally. It's just a classification the Ministry of Magic—yes Harriet, we do have our own government, I'll tell you about it later—made up because they don't want people using powerful magics._

_But Tom, wouldn't it just be bad spells? Spells that hurt people?_

_No. It's many powerful spells. Spells that are harmless but classified so because of political reasons, or potentially harmful spells that have other uses. Of course spells like the torture curse are included in Dark Arts, but not all of them are dark. It's all about intent. I could use a first year spell, the levitation charm, to levitate a heavy object and drop it on someone, potentially killing them._

_It's all about power, my dear girl. _Continued Tom. _Power, and those too weak to seek it._

-x-

Tom had continued to lecture Harry about the nature of magic and spells. He told her many interesting things, like how magic didn't defy the laws of physics, but worked within a set of laws the muggles didn't have the ability to discover. Chemistry also played an important role in both potions and transfiguration. It was truly interesting. Arithmancy, which she learned she couldn't take until third year, was the study of the magical properties of numbers and using them to predict outcomes. Harry looked forward to that class. She'd always been good at maths and Tom seemed to put importance to the magical properties of numbers.

Their talk about magic and the classes offered at Hogwarts soon turned into a discussion about what the school was like. Tom told Harry about the four houses, how Hufflepuff was for the loyal and hard working, Ravenclaw the clever and studious, Gryffindor the bold and brave, and finally Slytherin, Tom's own house. He spoke of it with and odd sort of reverence, Harry thought. He delighted in telling her how it was for those who were ambitious and cunning, he described the common room, how Slytherin could talk to snakes, and so much more. Harry could tell Tom loved his house, and even Hogwarts as a whole. She thought she understood. It was some place to fit in. Some place where he wasn't a freak—he was normal, if a rather gifted student, according to the diary.

The way he spoke of the food had Harry drooling. The warm, cozy, luxurious four poster beds sounded like heaven. Even if it taught muggle subjects, Harry would want to go just to experience the castle and it's accommodations.

_Hogwarts is home, _Tom told her. And she thought that perhaps, when she turned eleven, it would be home for her too.

-x-

Two months later it was Harry's 10th birthday and she was excited. She'd intimidated her relatives into giving her a day off chores with her magic, and it would be the first birthday (that she could remember) that she wasn't completely alone. She had a friend to celebrate with, and though there were no presents, no cake, and no party, it made all the difference.

She'd been planning how to spend her day all week. First, she would wake up and take a hot bath, a luxury her relatives rarely afforded her, however with a bit of well placed shaking, she would get her way. Next she'd graciously make pancakes for the entire family, and snagged a couple for herself. After that she'd lock herself in her room and talk to Tom until it was time for lunch, which she would eat quickly so she could return to Tom as soon as she could. Supper would be an interesting affair. She would make sure she got a portion as large as Dudley's, and eat in her room, away from her hateful relatives. It was far from an exciting day, but it was a day of relaxation and time spent with Tom, and that's all she needed. There was only one thing that could make it more perfect...

-x-

When Harry opened the diary the words _Happy Birthday, my dear Harriet _greeted her. She grinned from ear to ear and quickly wrote back her thanks. It was the first time she'd been wished Happy Birthday.

_I hope you enjoy your birthday. What would you like to talk about today?_ Tom inquired. He decided to let her set the topic as anything she wanted, and even if she decided to talk fashion, he resolved to humour her.

_Yesterday you mentioned you're a half blood. What does that mean? _Asked the newly ten year old girl.

_Ah. Blood status. A rather complicated subject for the day, considering. Are you sure you want to __know?_

_Yes. _ She responded firmly. She wanted to know, even if it was a heavy subject. Especially if it was a heavy subject.

_To explain half-blood, I need to explain the terms pureblood and muggleborn. Muggleborn is self-descriptive. A witch or wizard who is born to muggle filth. Often times muggle lovers, they usually don't even bother trying to fit into our world. The come and expect everything to be the same, and then when it isn't they try to change it to suit their desires, completely disrespecting and disregarding our own unique culture. They bring in muggle prejudices and try to impose them on us. The majority are worthless. Often thought to be magically less powerful. Whether they are or not is debatable. _

_Purebloods are witches and wizards who grew up in the magical world and have no trace of muggle blood in their veins._ Tom continued._ Or so they claim. They likely married some half-bloods at some point, bringing a small amount of it into their bloodline. Some believe them to be magically more powerful and they often look down upon muggleborns, or mudbloods, as some refer to them._

_Half bloods are half and half. One parent is a pureblood, the other muggle or muggleborn. For example, my despicable father who abandoned my mother was a muggle, and my mother a pureblooded witch, descended from Salazar Slytherin himself._

Harry felt that explained his attachment to Slytherin house at Hogwarts. It was, quite literally, his. She felt a bit disheartened at the explanation about muggleborns though, as she likely was one herself. It sounded like Tom didn't think very highly of them.

_So I'm probably a muggleborn, right? _Harry guessed.

_No, _Tom replied, surprising her. _You're probably a half-blood, like me. The name Potter is that of a small pureblood family. I __heard a few Potter boys graduated shortly before I started Hogwarts__. __I met them at a social gathering one year. __One of which you are likely descended from. Considering your relatives seem to know of magic, though they hide it from you, and your parents were also "freaks" according to them, your mother was likely a muggleborn witch._

_I see... That's nice to know._ And it was. It was nice to know something about her family. All she knew previously was that her parents were named Lily and James Potter, and allegedly died in a car crash. She was still a bit doubtful of that story, though part of her did believe it. She didn't even know what they looked like, though. _What did the Potter boys look like? _ Maybe it would give her insight into what her father looked like and who she took after.

_The Potter boys... I don't recall their names, but there were two of them. They both had brown eyes and messy black hair. They were on the shorter side. I'm sorry, but that's all I can recall. I never paid them much mind. __I only met them once or twice._Tom answered slowly, as if it took him awhile to recall those details.

_Thank you Tom. I wish I could hug you. _The petite raven haired girl confessed with a blush adorning her face.

_Maybe someday you will, dear Harriet._ He replied swiftly.

_Really? How? When? _ She asked eagerly, a smile adorning her features. She could just imagine what that meant. That it was possible for him to have a body of some sort. She wondered what he looked like. She couldn't decide on a mental image of him though. Everything seemed too imperfect for the boy. In her eyes, he was perfect. Oh, she knew he did bad things. She knew he had tormented children in the orphanage with his magic as revenge. She knew about Billy Stubb's rabbit, how he killed it without a second thought, and while at first it scared her, she grew to accept Tom for who he was. After all, she'd thought about hurting people too. She desperately wanted the Dursley's to keel over and die. And besides, he was so _nice_ to her. So _compassionate_, so _gentle_. He may have done bad things, but he cared about her. He wouldn't hurt her. It didn't matter what he did to others. To her he was perfect. And if he could have a body...

_It is possible. That was the purpose of this diary, to regain a body in the future. There are two ways to do it. The first and easiest is out of the question, I'm afraid, as it would require your life as a sacrifice, and that is something I am no longer willing to do._ He answered slowly, carefully.

_Why? _Harriet queried. _Why is that no longer an option? _Not that she wanted to die, mind you, even for Tom, but she did wonder why he decided not to kill her and properly _live_.

_My dear girl, I must admit, at first I cared little for you, and intended to use you to get my own body... However as you spoke to me, you reminded me of myself. We have so much in common; I even look a bit like you, believe it or not. You have such potential, Harriet. These things lead me to care for you. _ Tom admitted to the jade-eyed girl.

Harry smiled with a blush. It was nice to know he cared about her enough to forgo his original plans. _What was the other way?_

_I'll need a few drops of blood, willingly given, first of all. I will need some at least once a week. I'll grow stronger and take on a ghost-like form that only you can see. I won't be able to interact with the environment, but I'll be able to see and hear things, and talk to you. That is the first step. The rest is more complicated. A ritual and a sacrifice will be required—not human, don't worry. A large mammal will do. The ritual is best performed on Halloween, when the veil between the living and dead is thinnest. We won't be able to do it this year. Next year perhaps. I'll give you instructions closer to the time of the ritual._

_Blood I can give you easily. Let me go get a needle from Aunt Petunia's sewing kit._ Without waiting for a response, Harriet hurried out of her room into the guest room where Petunia kept her (mostly unused) sewing kit. Rummaging through it quickly, Harriet found a sewing needle that was sharp enough to break her skin. She rushed back to her room and locked the door. When she arrived a message was waiting for her in the journal.

_Wait,_ it said. _The blood establishes a connection that lets my siphon off a portion of your magic. It will drain you enough that you'll be too tired to do anything but sleep for several hours. It is best to wait until just before bed._

_Fine, _she conceded. _But I'll be going to bed early!_

-x-

True to her word, when the clock struck 8 'o'clock in the evening Harry dressed for bed, brushed her hair and teeth and locked her door. She pulled out Tom's diary and her aunt's sewing needle.

_I just need to let it drop on the pages, right? _She inquired hesitantly holding the silver needle in one hand and the pencil in the other. She wanted to do this, but she didn't want to do it wrong.

_Yes, but you don't have to do this if you don't wish to. _ Tom gently reminded her.

_I know. But I want to. I want to help you Tom, like you helped me. _

_Very well then. A single drop will do._

Harriet took the needle and wincing, gently poked her index finger. Realizing she was being silly and needed to use more force to puncture her skin, she pricked her finger and let the blood drop onto the open diary.

There was a flash of red light and suddenly, Harry's world turned black.

-o-

AN: So... not really longer, but updated the next day makes up for that, right? Chapters will probably be this length for now. To be honest, I'm not used to writing and find it difficult to write long chapters. Perhaps I'll eventually work my way up. Don't get used to daily updates though... I'm not sure how long I could keep it up for.

I am looking for a beta and brit picker.

Also, thank you all so much for the overwhelming support. It means so much.

Best,

KCE

Edited October 16th 2015


	3. To Diagon Alley

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 3: To Diagon Alley

-o-

When Harry came to she was lying on the floor of her tiny bedroom. The first thing she noticed was that it was now dark outside her window. The floorboards were hard underneath her and her back ached. She had collapsed in a rather uncomfortable heap and no one was around to move her to the bed or adjust her into a more comfortable position.

Sitting up, she gasped. Sitting beside her was a transparent, albeit extremely handsome young man. He appeared to be in his teen years, perhaps sixteen or seventeen. He had dark green eyes and wavy black hair. His skin appeared to be pale and flawless, but it could have just been because of his transparency. He had a strong jaw and high cheekbones.

"See something you like?" Asked the handsome man.

"Tom?" Harry whispered. "We really do look something alike."

"The one and only." He smirked, causing Harry to blush. "I'm afraid I couldn't help you after you passed out, since I can't move anything. It appears your blood created an extremely potent connection between us, and the magic came almost immediately rather than over several minutes, causing you to pass out almost immediately as well."

"I see. Oh well. Next time I'll do it on my bed." She responded before shivering. Tom had ghosted his fingers over her cheek and his touch was almost freezing. She felt no pressure from his touch, but she revelled in the cold temperature assuring her of his actions.

She stood up slowly, Tom watching her carefully despite not being able to do anything should she fall and pass out again. She sluggishly trudged over to her small bed and collapsed on it in a graceless heap.

"Sleep," the dark haired young man commanded. "I'll watch over you."

"Thank you, Tom." Replied the equally dark haired girl.

-x-

The small girl woke to the sound of her aunt rapping on her door.

"Up! Up, you ungrateful child. Breakfast should already be on the table! With everything we do for you, you are not to laze about in bed when you have chores!" her aunt scolded in her shrill voice.

"Yes, Aunt Petunia." Harriet called, rolling her eyes at her ghostly companion who had a look of disgust on his face. "Sorry, Aunt Petunia."

"We went easy on you yesterday, girl. Do not think that kindness extends to today as well. Diddy-dums is hungry!" with that final parting reminder, Petunia left to go spy on the neighbours or something equally petty, Harry figured.

"What a disgusting woman." Tom remarked. "She's worse than you described, dear girl. I should have expected it though, useless, filthy creature that muggles are."

"As much as I don't like them I'd hardly call them useless. Have wizards been to the moon?" Harriet inquired while she got dressed. Tom turned around out of politeness, but Harry would have been comfortable enough in his presence to still change had he not.

"No. Have muggles managed this since I was created?" he asked, somewhat curiously.

"Yes, some time in the sixties I believe." She responded.

"They're still inferior. Wizards can go to the moon too." He pointed out superiorly.

"Oh really? How?" she asked as she finished dressing and started combing her hair, which was a chore in and of itself.

"The exact same way, of course. We can do anything muggles can. But they can't do everything we can. Therefore, we are superior to them." A smirk adorned his face as he watched Harriet take in what he had just said.

With a huff, Harriet crossed her arms. "Fine! You make a good point." She conceded.

"I don't see why you care so much for the worth of muggles in comparison. They've hardly done anything to earn your respect. One should think you'd loathe them with more intensity than even the most hateful purebloods, having experienced muggles first hand." Tom didn't say it, but she could tell he was slightly disappointed she had tried to defend muggles.

"I don't, not really." She winced as she pulled on a particularly difficult tangled in her hair. "I guess I just want to be realistic. Muggles are hateful and jealous of us, but that doesn't mean they're completely stupid. They've discovered and done great things without magic."

"Indeed," Tom agreed while pacing the length of her small room. "But we can do all those same things. We can reproduce anything they do, with or without magic. Had we need, we could have developed the technology muggles have. But we didn't have to."

"I didn't say otherwise," Harry hastened to explain, not wanting to disappoint Tom further. "I guess I'm just trying to understand. I don't doubt that we're superior to muggles, but I'm not going to lie and say they are on the level of dogs. Being superior to a dog is less meaningful then being superior to a race that has accomplished all that muggles have. I don't like them, but..." she trailed off.

"Well argued, Harriet. Perhaps you have a point." Tom granted as Harriet finished her hair and ran to the bathroom to brush her teeth and take care of other needs. Tom waited outside the door.

"I shan't expect you to respond to me when others are around." Tom told her reasonably as Harry exited the loo.

Harry nodded as she ran downstairs, understanding that it made sense. People would think she was crazy if she talked to what appeared to be no one. She entered the kitchen and put some bread in the toaster before starting on the bacon, which was a staple at the Dursley home. She was sure they spent more on bacon than the rest of the street combined.

Tom continued to talk to her as she cooked, her nodding along or shaking her head when appropriate. He talked about light topics of no importance, just speaking to make her chore go by more quickly.

After a quick breakfast she continued to do her daily chores, including doing the laundry, vacuuming the carpets and rugs, mopping the rest of the floors, dusting the entire house, wiping down the kitchen and doing the dishes, and finally weeding and watering the garden and flowerbeds. The whole time Tom kept a steady stream of conversation, complaining about muggles and the way she was treated by them, talking about his own experience with muggles and at the orphanage, and his experiences at Hogwarts, which Harry liked listening to the most.

The more the jade eyed girl worked, the angrier Tom got, though he hid it expertly from his younger companion. He didn't want to frighten her after all, or make her believe his anger was directed at her. He understood children were often given chores to complete, however the sheer number she was given was ridiculous. Her whale of a cousin should have done some of the work, and her aunt and uncle should be the ones doing the majority of it. He told the young witch as much, and she shrugged, not wanting to get into it.

In truth she no longer minded the chores, especially now that it didn't take away from her time with Tom. She was glad to be occupied instead of sitting in her room doing nothing. Since she had no friends (besides her now constant companion) and no toys, there wasn't much to do besides the chores.

By lunch time she was preparing soup and sandwiches for Dudley, Petunia, and herself expertly.

After lunch she was free from chores until it was time to prepare dinner for the family. She decided to walk down to the nearby park and find a secluded area to just speak with Tom and enjoy the summer heat. She packed Tom's diary into her bag and slung it over her shoulder, as Tom had told her he could only go so far from the Diary. They continued to chat as they walked to the park, Harry replying quietly so she didn't get weird looks while she walked down the street. She figured she could pretend she was just talking to herself if someone noticed she was saying anything at all.

Walking down Magnolia Crescent, she passed Mrs. Figg's house. One of the old lady's cats jumped out at the young girl, startling her. She let out a small shout and fell on her bottom.

"Which one are you, huh?" she giggled and checked the tag. "Snowball, huh? Pretty strange name for a cat that isn't even white."

"That's not a cat." Tom interjected quietly.

"What do you mean? What else could it be?" Harry asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"It's a kneazle. A type of magic cat." Explained Tom. "It would seem a witch or wizard lives near here."

"Mrs. Figg?" Harriet asked. "I've been to her house plenty of times. The Dursleys leave me there when they go on outing without me. Her house doesn't seem very magical. She's a bit strange, mind you, but she doesn't seem magical."

"Perhaps a squib then," suggested Tom. "It would explain living in a purely muggle area. Most wizards and witches live in one of the alleys."

"What alleys?" asked Harry. She was quite interested in learning where magical people lived.

"There are several. The main alley is Diagon Alley. It has shops, the Daily Prophet—our newspaper—office, and several other things. There is also Knockturn Alley which tends to feature less reputable people. There you'll find shops that sell things considered 'dark,' as well as a few less savoury businesses."

"Like what?" the dark haired girl asked curiously.

"...I'll explain when you're older." Tom explained awkwardly, ignoring Harry's pout. "Then there is Actu Alley, which is a middle class residential district, Reg Alley which is a higher end residential district and Dism Alley which is the slums. There is also a few more I can't think of off the top of my head. They're all in London though."

"Oh. So can I go to Diagon Alley someday? Please?" Harry begged him.

"Of course," Tom responded easily. "However you'll have to do exactly as I say. Follow my instructions to the letter."

"Deal!" She nodded eagerly.

"Also, we'll need money. Wizards have their own currency, so we'll have to exchange it at the Wizard's bank, Gringotts." He told her. "It's best if you discreetly take small amounts from your relatives over a large period of time. Fifty pounds should be enough."

"Fifty pounds!" she exclaimed loudly, drawing looks to her. She blushed and ducked her head, walking faster. She shot Tom a look and he understood that they would continue their conversation in the park. It was only a few minutes off.

After they arrived at the small, almost deserted park, Harriet went into the trees and found a small, remote spot to speak to Tom.

"So..." She began. "Fifty pounds? That's a lot of money."

"Fifty pounds is only ten galleons. We'll need it for the blood test at the bank. They're quite expensive, but I'd wager that you probably have some money there, but without a key a blood test must be done to prove your identity." Tom explained.

"Oh, how much does it cost?" Harry wondered.

"In my time the most extensive test cost four galleons, which is about twenty pounds. The lesser test only costs one galleon."

"Oh. So why do we need fifty pounds if it only costs about twenty?"

"For one, in case the price has increased, and for second, in case you _don't_ have money at the bank." He responded.

"Oh. Okay. So I should sneak some money from Uncle Vernon's wallet and Aunt Petunia's purse, huh? A little at a time?" she suggested.

"Yes. That is a good plan. Once you have enough, we'll go to Diagon Alley."

-x-

It wasn't until the end of August that she had managed to swipe enough money. Fortunately, Dudley often left his money lying around the house and would just assume he'd already spent it. Harry managed to swipe twenty pounds in increments of five that way. The rest she pilfered from her uncle's wallet. She took two ten pound bills and a twenty.

Tom told her it was the perfect time to go any ways. The alley would be rather busy with last minute school shoppers so it was unlikely that anyone would notice she was alone. It also helped that though she was small, she could pass off as a first year and easily obtain the first year books a bit early to study ahead. She simply had to say her parents sent her to get the books, but she had lost her list and didn't want to disappoint them.

The morning she went dawned early. She quickly showered and dressed before making breakfast. She made sure to make a huge amount of bacon for Dudley and Vernon as well a heaping stack of pancakes. She hoped that with the large offering and threat of magic they'd let her have the day off. Her aunt sniffed at her while she worked, probably guessing what Harry was up to.

When her uncle and cousin stomped down the stairs she already had breakfast on the table. Vernon eyed it critically, knowing something was up. He looked at Harry and asked her what she wanted.

Suppressing a grin, she answered her uncle. She told him she would like the day off, as she had plans to go to London.

"Oh and how do you plan to get there?" he asked snidely. "I'm not giving you a ride, girl."

Harry looked at Tom, not knowing how to answer. He'd simply told her to trust him and he'd take care of it.

"I'll explain later." Her ghostly companion told her. "For now just tell him you have your ways."

She repeated what Tom said and her uncle snorted, but let it go after giving her permission to spend the day in London, but only so long as she did even more chores the next day. To Harry it was worth it.

After finishing the dishes and packing Tom's diary in a bag, Tom told her to leave the house and find a secluded area. Harry decided the area in the park that had become their place was suitable and headed over. Once they arrived she looked at Tom expectantly.

"Do you trust me, Harriet?" He asked her. "Completely and totally trust me?"

"Yes." She answered without hesitation.

"I will need to possess your body. Once I do, I will apparate us to our destination." He explained.

Harriet gulped, but nodded. "What do I do?"

"Nothing. Just close your eyes."

Harriet closed them and felt a chill. Then nothing. When her eyes opened again they were a deep forest green. She disappeared with a loud crack.

-x-

When she came to, she was standing in dingy side alley near the Leaky Cauldron. Tom told her how to get there from the alley and instructed her on how to open the passage to Diagon Alley. When she stepped through, she was amazed.

She saw wizards and witches in colourful robes everywhere. The alley was loud, full of the noise of its many shoppers. She stood there a moment taking everything in—the cobblestone streets, the stone buildings, the colourful signs.

Tom then directed her to the large white building in the middle of the alley.

"That's Gringotts," he told her. "It's run by goblins. They're small, humanoid creatures. Very ruthless. Be polite but firm. You don't want to get on their bad side."

Nodding, she walked up the white marble steps to the gold doors. She pushed it open and gawked. The place was very fancy for a bank, she thought. Gold statues were mounted on the wall and a gold chandelier hung overhead.

Tom directed her to an open teller, and told her what she needed to say.

"Excuse me, sir. I would like to exchange this money into galleons and have a blood test done." She stated in a firm voice.

"Very well, hand it over." The goblin replied reaching for her money. She handed it over and he counted out the galleons. As Tom had said he would, he handed her ten of them. "Now madam, which would you like, the standard test where we only prove your identity and check for vaults in your name, which is one galleon seven sickles, or the full test where we check your ancestry and if you can claim any old, heirless vaults for five galleons?"

"The latter." Tom told her and she repeated what he said and handed over five galleons.

"Very well, come with me." The goblin ordered. He led her to a room with a large blank tapestry on the wall. He held out a knife. "Three drops of blood onto floor before the tapestry."

Harriet did as he said and her name bloomed onto the tapestry. Her parents names grew out of hers, and their parents name from theirs. She watched as it went slowly traced back six generations.

"Ah, Miss Potter. Welcome to Gringotts." The goblin told her. "You have the vault you inherited from your parents, vault 687. You also have restricted access to vault 892, granted to you by your godfather, Sirius Black who has been incarcerated. You will have to give me a half hour while I check the results of your test against the unclaimed vaults. You may wait here."

She turned to look at Tom, surprised to find that not only did she have a godfather, but that he was in prison, however he was deeply engrossed with the tapestry and hadn't noticed the conversation that had taken place. "Tom?"

"Yes, my dear?" he asked turning to her. "I apologize; I was rather fascinated with your mother's lineage."

"What about it?" Harry asked deciding to put her questions aside for the moment. Tom likely couldn't answer them any ways.

"She's descended from the Parkinson family on her mother's side. One of the Sacred Twenty-eight." He explained. "It appears about four generations ago a squib was cast off and married a muggle. On her father's side she's descended from the MacDougal family. Three generations ago they had a squib who married a muggle as well. Eventually your mother was born from these lines."

"Oh. That's interesting, but what's so fascinating about it to you? It's not your family, is it?" she asked, not terribly interested.

"No. But it makes me wonder if all muggleborns are descended from magical families. If so, it could be argued that keeping squibs out of the muggle world is necessary to prevent muggles from gaining our abilities." He explained.

"But they aren't muggles gaining out abilities, Tom. They're squibs gaining our abilities. A son of a squib is another squib, rather than a muggle, yes? Like you're a wizard because you're mum was a witch even if your father wasn't magical." Harry countered.

"I suppose. It seems that the joining of two squib lines produces a magical offspring. So it still is probably best that squibs stay in the magical world in this case. Though they can't use magic, they can still pass it on genetically." Tom was thinking aloud at this point and Harriet tuned him out. She understood what he was saying.

"It's all conjecture of course," he continued, wrapping up his thoughts. "But I suppose there may be no muggleborns and only half-bloods and pure-bloods. I'll need to see more family trees. At Hogwarts, make friends with a muggleborn and suggest they check their family tree."

"Excuse me Miss Potter?" The goblin interrupted, startling Harry and Tom (though he'd deny it) who had not noticed him enter the room. "Please follow me. We have finished checking which vaults you may claim."

Harry followed him out of the room and into another room further down the hall. It was a small office with a large desk covered in papers and two seats in front of it. Harriet took one of them, and though no one else could see it, Tom took the other.

"Very well, as I said, you already have access or partial access to two vaults, and there are three that you can claim. The vault 405 from the Helling family, vault 672 from the McQuillens, and 957 from the Witt family. I cannot tell you their contents without you claiming them, however the vault from your parents contains approximately 326, 579 galleons, the total including knuts and sickles is on this statement" he said passing a piece of parchment to Harry. "As you are not the sole owner of vault 892 I cannot tell you how much is in it, only that you may withdraw up to 10,000 galleons annually."

"I-wow." The Potter heiress gaped. "That's a lot. Over a million pounds, correct?"

"Yes." Both Tom and the goblin intoned.

"I see. May I make a withdrawal from vault 892? Do I need a key?" Harry inquired politely.

"Yes. I'll have a key made for you. It will take five minutes and cost five galleons. Please wait here." The goblin answered.

"Jeez, robbery..." Harry muttered to herself. "Lots of waiting too."

Tom told her to quit whining. She wisely followed his command. When the goblin reappeared with the key she followed him to a hazardous looking cart. She entered it with prompting from the goblin and assurance that she'd be fine from Tom. In the end, she enjoyed the cart ride to the vault. Once there the goblin took the key back and opened the vault before handing the key back to her. She put it in her bag and entered the vault.

What she saw amazed her. It was filled with piles of galleons, columns of silver, and heaps of bronze knuts. The walls were lined with bookshelves containing rare tomes and various trinkets. Seeing her eye the books, the goblin informed her she could only take money from the vault. Nodding, she headed over to the pile of gold galleons and took about seventy or so of them, as well a handful each of sickles and knuts. With that, she turned and re-entered the cart, going back up to the main level of Gringotts. Thanking the goblin, she left him and the bank behind her with Tom at her side.

It was time to explore Diagon Alley.

-x-

"Where to first, Tom?" Harry asked excitedly but quietly.

"We are only going to be buying some books, however you may stop at the ice cream parlour, browse the apothecary and quidditch store and whatever else catches your fancy." Tom replied feeling rather amused at the excitement of his companion, or dare he say it, _friend_.

Harriet pouted but nodded. Tom then directed her to the apothecary where she quickly walked around a bit, not wanting to stay long in the interesting but smelly shop. Afterwards she asked for directions to the quidditch store, figuring that might be more interesting.

She had fallen in love with the idea of flying on a broom, and couldn't wait until first year flying lessons. She planned to buy a broom as soon as possible now that she knew she could definitely afford it. She wasn't sure if she'd like quidditch, as Tom didn't care much for it and thus knew only the basics, but she had resolved to buy a book about it at the book store.

She entered the shop quietly, ignoring the other children shouting to their parents about what they wanted and quickly found the best broom in the store, a Cleansweep 7. She eyed it enviously. She'd always dreamed of flying and being a witch meant she could.

"You can buy one in your second year, Harrriet." Tom told her quietly.

She looked at him questioningly. She'd have thought that she would be able to get one next year when she went to Hogwarts.

"First years aren't allowed broomsticks, dearest." He answered with a sympathetic look on his face. "But, once I have a body, I can teach you to fly _without_ a broomstick."

Harry's head snapped towards him, her eyes wide. She quickly exited the store and found an empty side street. "Why didn't you tell me sooner!?" she demanded, slightly annoyed.

"I never thought to." He answered honestly.

"Humph. Fine. Let's go to the book store. Which one?" Harriet dropped the topic, she knew he was telling the truth and there was no point fighting over it, despite how annoyed she was.

"Flourish and Blotts should have all the books we're interested it. It'll be quite busy too, so if you have a question you should be able to ask me without anyone noticing." Tom responded easily.

Harry nodded her head and followed her constant companion through the throngs of people until she stood outside a store bearing the sign "Flourish and Blotts." She made her way to the front of the store where an employee stood behind a counter. She waited in line until it was her turn before asking him for the first year list.

"Lost yours, eh?" the man chuckled while grabbing a list from underneath the counter. "Wouldn't be the first."

Harry forced a blush and nodded at the man, taking the paper from his hand. "Thank you, sir. I really appreciate this." She said earnestly. "My mum sent me to get my books but I didn't want to admit I'd dropped my list."

"It's no problem, lass. Glad to be of service."

The young witch quickly went about the store grabbing the books on the list as well as a few others that seemed pretty interesting. She found "Quidditch Through the Ages" and added that to her pile while Tom was off reading the spines of the books in the history section, trying to find one on recent history so he could catch up with the times. He planned to have Harriet turn the pages for him since he couldn't do so himself. He found a few promising books and wandered back over to the dark haired girl, telling her of his selections and guiding her to their location. She picked them up and walked back to the line at the front of the store, once again waiting for her turn.

She left the store minutes later, her bag heavy with the weight of the many books she'd bought and entered a small disused side street. She stopped for a moment, closed her eyes, and when she opened them they had darkened considerably. She looked around the area for any watchers before disapparating.

She arrived in their spot and opened her eyes which were back to their stunning jade green. Smiling at Tom, she made her way home to hide her books under the loose floorboard in her room and make supper for her relatives.

-o-

AN: Annnd there we have it, chapter 3 clocking in at just less than 4500 words. Go me! This was really a challenge, but I wanted to give you guys something longer since I really appreciated all the support you've given me. Over 70 follows with half as many favourites. Thanks guys! It's really motivating me to keep at this story. I'd hate to disappoint you. That said, if it's been a month and I haven't updated, feel free to review and tell me to get my ass into gear. Again, don't except daily updates to last forever. I know tomorrow I'm busy and probably won't update.

A fair warning: eventually this story will get dark and contain some uncomfortable themes, but that's kinda obvious for TMR/HP fic, right?

Something else I thought I'd warn you about; while I don't believe in bashing, some characters you like may not be looked upon favourably by Harriet or Tom. If you think I cross the line into bashing, let me know.

As for the names of the alleys, I tried to keep with the pun theme. I chose to use "Regally," "Actually," and "Dismally."

I try to do my research, but if you notice something is off, let me know (along with a source) and I'll try and fix it. Again, I'm looking for a beta and britpicker! If you think you can help, let me know!

Best,

KCE

Edited October 17th 2015


	4. Revelations

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 4: Revelations

-o-

Two days later Harry could be found lying on her bed with two books open in front of her. One was a charms book which she was reading, the other a text on recent history her companion was reading while lying beside her. Harry was half way through her book whereas Tom was nearly done his.

"Next page." Tom ordered and Harry turned it without even looking at the book, too engrossed in reading about basic charms.

"_Bloody fuck._" Tom swore in parseltongue some minutes later. He didn't want Harry to hear him use such foul language.

"_What? Why'd you swear?_" she hissed back. Tom's head snapped up and he turned to look at her in shock.

"_You can understand me?_" he hissed at her.

"_Yes. I do speak English you know_." Harry bit back feeling rather annoyed. He was speaking plain English and she wasn't dumb. She didn't know what was going on with Tom.

"_This isn't English, __dearest__. This is parseltongue, the language of snakes._" Tom soothed. "_It's very rare to be able to speak it. I was the only person I know of who can. Well, until you. It's a trait of the Slytherin bloodline._"

"_Oh_." Harry looked away feeling slightly foolish. She's spoken a whole other language and not even realized it.

"Don't feel bad," Tom replied switching to their mother tongue. "It sounds like our first language to us."

"Oh. Why did you swear any ways?" Harry asked, not to be deterred from her original question.

"It's not good news, dearest." Tom said. He stood and started pacing.

"It can't be that bad, right? I mean, what's it got to do with me?" she reasoned.

"Everything." He countered. "Harriet, do you want the amusing part before or after the bad news?"

"...There's an amusing part?" Harry asked warily. "Sure. Get it out of the way."

"You're famous." Tom informed her bluntly. "But what's hilarious is you're famous as _Harry _Potter, not _Harriet _Potter. For some reason they're under the belief that you're a boy."

"I- what? What on earth am I famous for—why do they think I'm a _boy_? Are you sure it's me?" Harry asked, feeling bemused.

"Yes, I'm sure. Your parents are Lily and James Potter, correct?" Tom didn't give her time to answer. "I'd assume they heard the name Harry Potter, which is likely a nickname close friends and family called you, perhaps explaining your affinity for it, and assumed you were a boy. Why no one corrected them is unclear. Perhaps for protection and privacy purposes."

"But why am I famous Tom? Why would I need protection?" she questioned him.

Tom took an unneeded deep breath through his nose and stopped pacing. He turned to look at her with a very serious look on his face. "Harriet... what do you know of what I am?"

"Uh... you're part of a person trapped in a diary? For some reason you did that to yourself?" Harry asked, her voice wavering.

"Yes. I'm part of a person. When I was sixteen I split my soul and put part of it in this diary. You see, by doing so the original piece becomes immortal. If he dies, I'm still here, anchoring him to the world. In his bodiless state he would be able to possess people and animals." Tom explained. "I was never intended to get a body, despite what I told you. But I now am a separate person from the main soul piece, I have my own mind. I developed wants and desires. Fifty years is a long time to spend alone."

"What's this got to do with anything though?" Harry was just plain confused. Why did it matter what Tom was?

"I'm telling you this, Harriet, so you understand that it was not me who did this, but the man I branched off from. I have no control over his actions. We are essentially separate people, despite sharing and being connected by our soul." Tom explained patiently.

"Who did what?" Harry asked.

"Halloween 1981," Tom began. "For an unknown reason you and your family were in hiding from a dark lord. His name was Lord Voldemort. He found your family that night. He killed your father first. He did not have his wand. Your mother was next. She was found in front of your crib. When the dark lord turned his wand on you, however, something thought to be impossible occurred."

Harry's breath hitched. "What happened?"

"He cast the killing curse at you. It never fails, supposedly. That is until it hit you. Things get fuzzy at this point, but allegedly the curse hit you and rebound, destroying the dark lord, leaving but the mark on your forehead."

"It was the other you, wasn't it?" Harry asked. "Lord Voldemort is your... other self."

"Yes." Tom confirmed, looking away from her.

Hary was silent for a moment. "Will you join him?" she asked.

"No, dearest, even had he not killed your parents I would not join him. I do not share power." Tom answered.

"Would you let him kill me?" she questioned further.

"No." Tom said simply.

"Then it doesn't matter. Like you said, you're essentially two different people, right? So it doesn't affect anything between us." Harry reasoned with a small smile.

"Indeed. You are correct dearest. I shouldn't have doubted you'd think differently." Tom replied and kissed Harry's forehead. Harry blushed.

She tried to force it down, but failed. She decided to distract herself with the chapter in the history book about herself. She spent the next twenty minutes reading and staring at the family picture of her parents holding her in a mint green blanket.

"It says according to some guy called Dumbledore I've been "placed in a secure location that shall not be disclosed for privacy and protection." Do you know who that guy is?" Harriet asked.

"Hm... Yes. Dumbledore was my transfiguration professor. Earlier in the book it says he defeated the previous dark lord, Grindelwald and became headmaster of Hogwarts." Tom answered.

"Why would the headmaster be the one to place me?" she queried.

"I do not know. It says he is Supreme Mugwump, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, and Grand Sorcerer in his chapter. Perhaps he used one of those titles to get his way. Perhaps he knew your parents." Tom was guessing here, but when he made guesses and assumptions, they were usually right.

"Either way, you'd think he'd have checked up on me or something." Harry grumbled. "Seen the way the Dursleys are treating me."

"Perhaps he has, Harriet." Tom interjected. "He knew how it was for me at the orphanage and did not a thing, despite me all but begging to stay at the school for summer holidays."

Harry swallowed. She didn't like that idea very much, but somehow it rang true to her ears.

-x-

Over the next few months Harry studied her textbooks relentlessly in her spare time. Tom would quiz her on the theory and have her practice wand movements with a twig. He was a very demanding teacher who rarely gave out praise, but when he did it was all the sweeter. So far Harry preferred charms and defence against the dark arts. The offensive spells particularly drew her attention after Tom enlightened her to her situation.

"If I know myself, and I do, a baby defeatomg me would wound my pride beyond all reason." He told her. "I would not allow this child to live a second time. As I have told you, Lord Voldemort is still alive and he'll be back. And when he is, he will come after you. He will not allow you to live after humiliating him so."

It was sobering news, and it made Harry nervous. Tom was unaware of Voldemort's current status and location and that made him wary. He doubted Voldemort would recover any time soon, as from the sound of things his followers were in Azkaban or living the cushy life without him and wouldn't risk their current comfort.

It did make Harry apply herself to her studies. If she had a maniacal dark lord with fifty years of experience on her then she would have to play a lot of catch up. Luckily, she had Tom who knew Voldemort better than anyone else and could predict how he thought.

Meanwhile, as Harry studied, Tom grew stronger with her generous biweekly donations of blood. He became more opaque with the more blood he absorbed and soon Harry could even feel his touch beyond just a cold sensation. Harry would still pass out, but she was careful to arrange herself into a relatively comfortable position on her bed beforehand.

They occasionally ventured into Diagon Alley to fetch more books and have an ice cream, but they kept their trips to a maximum of once a month, so as not to push her luck with her relatives.

She knew she couldn't push them too far. A bit of intimidation was okay, but too much and she knew they'd send her away to an orphanage, and after hearing Tom's stories of them she definitely did not want to go to one. Life with the Dursleys was far from perfect, but at least they had never performed an exorcism on her.

-x-

"Can magical people read minds, Tom?" Harriet asked one winter day in their spot. It was relatively cold out, but she wanted time outside of her bedroom and had bundled up in her warmest clothes to brave the harsh winter winds. "I was wondering because in a fantasy book I read they could."

"Yes. It's called legilimency. It requires eye contact to work. A skilled user can use it wandlessly and non-verbally. It's a bit more complicated than simple mind reading. It can read not only your surface thoughts, but your memories as well." Tom explained in what Harry had dubbed his "teacher tone." "Most people don't even notice when someone reads their surface thoughts, though they may detect further intrusion in the form of a headache and seeing their memories for themselves."

"... Is there a way to stop that from happening?"

"Yes. It's called occlumency. You need the help of a legilimens you trust to help you though. They will intrude your mind and you must prevent them from seeing anything by clearing your mind and then force them out." Tom lectured. "The legilimens will see your innermost thoughts most likely, which is why trust is required. However, it has been known for the person learning to instinctively shove the person out of the mind and enter their partner's mind, which is why trust is need on that side as well. There are tricks to be used to prevent people from reading your surface thoughts. If you avoid looking someone in the eye you needn't worry unless they cast the spell. If you must look them in the eye, replaying boring memories or thinking harmless thoughts is useful.

"I personally found using a rather boring, endless loop of thoughts easiest for clearing my mind." Tom added.

"What did you use?"

"I simply thought "And then tick and then tock and then tick and then tock..." over and over again. It worked quite well."

"Who taught you?" Harriet asked. She couldn't imagine Tom trusting someone enough to teach him, though it sounded like a necessary skill.

"I learned from a seventh year student in my fourth year. Sadly, he disappeared after graduating from Hogwarts. I don't believe he was ever found." Tom grinned maniacally. Harry thought he looked rather attractive like that.

"Can you teach me?" she asked him.

"Yes. I was planning to start next year. It's dangerous to start before one is eleven or twelve. So your first year at Hogwarts you'll have to avoid the Headmaster's gaze." Tom cautioned. "He is a skilled legilimens. You're best to avoid the gaze of all the teachers until you can detect the subtle entry into your mind, just to be safe."

"I will." Harry promised. "Have you ever used legilimency on me Tom?"

"No," he lied. "I haven't."

-x-

"What are your plans, Tom?" Harry asked her companion in their spot. Winter was gradually melting into spring, and Harry was relieved as it meant they could spend more time in their place without fear of frost bite.

"To cull and conquer, cut and kill." He answered easily.

"No. I'm serious. What do you plan to do in the wizarding world?" she pushed. "Your other self went on to be a dark lord. I'm not dumb enough to believe you have no ambition yourself."

"True." Tom agreed. "But I'll tell you once your older. Nothing can be done until I have a body."

Harriet continued to push Tom, but he refused to answer. In the end she was left frustrated and resolved to ignore Tom for a week.

She lasted four days.

-x-

With spring came excitement. The day of her Hogwarts letter arriving was getting closer and closer, and Harry was growing restless. Her trips to Diagon Alley became more frequent, but she was also more cautious, stealing some of her aunt's makeup to hide her scar.

Tom was curious about her scar. It wasn't white and faded like a scar should be after nearly ten years. Instead it was red and subject to inflammation at certain times. He knew it was a cursed scar—what else could it be having come from the killing curse. The fact that the curse left a mark on her forehead was strange in itself.

There was little Tom could do however, seeing as he could not yet use his magic to probe it, as he had no body and no wand. Harry was slightly glad for this. Though she adored Tom, he left her feeling like a science experiment sometimes.

-x-

Time continued to pass in much the same fashion. Harry continued to study, Tom continued to grow stronger, and the Dursleys continued to be the scum of the earth. It was now nearing the end of June and school would be ending soon. Harry revelled in knowing that soon, she would be away from the horrid girls who always picked on her. Soon she would be home.

The morning of Sunday, June 23rd dawned bright and early for the young. She knew it would be a particularly difficult day seeing as it was Dudley's 11th birthday. Her aunt woke her up extra early to begin preparing a large breakfast for the special day. She prepared hash browns, sausage, bacon, pancakes and omelettes. By the time Dudley was up Harriet was already exhausted from all the cooking and Tom was scowling at the Dursleys, though they couldn't see him.

"Good morning, popkin!" Petunia simpered to her son. "A very happy birthday to you. I had the girl prepare you a nice large breakfast so you have a good beginning to you day!"

Dudley, however, paid his mother no mind and began counting the presents sitting on the table. He was appalled to find he had less presents than the year before and told his mother as much. She quickly placated him by agreeing to buy him two more presents sometime during the day. Dudley agreed with a grin, his fake tears immediately ceasing.

Over breakfast Vernon stomped into the room with a scowl on his face. "Bad news, Pet."

"Oh?" Petunia asked while passing Dudley a gift to open.

"Arabella Figg broke her leg. She can't take the boy today. Do you think that one friend of yours could?" he grumbled.

"No, she's in Majorca." Petunia answered snidely. "What about your sister?"

"Don't be silly pet, she hates the girl." Vernon shot back.

Dudley, seeing where this was going, promptly burst into tears and forsake his gift opening.

"Mummy, I don't want the brat to ruin my birthday! She can't come with us! We were going to go to the zoo!" he wailed.

"I don't know why they buy that," Tom commented to Harry. "His acting is poor. It's obvious to anyone who looks that he's faking."

Harry bobbed her head in response. "You could just leave me here." She suggests helpfully.

"Don't be ridiculous, girl." Vernon said. "We leave you alone and you'll blow up the house!"

"I can see why they'd think that possible, dearest" Tom laughed, causing Harriet to shoot him a glare. She would _not_blow up the house, thank you very much.

"I suppose we'll have to take her with us." Petunia decided, causing Dudley to let out a loud wail. Luckily, it was cut off by the doorbell ringing. "That'll be your friend, Dudleykins!"

Petunia rushed to the door to greet Mrs. Polkiss and Piers while Dudley immediately ceased his wails once again. He raced to the front door, screaming to his friend about what he'd received so far.

Harry sighed and returned to her room. She spent her time talking to Tom until she was called to leave with her relative for the zoo. She was excited. It wasn't something she'd ever seen before, and she desperately hoped there were snakes. She'd never actually spoken to one and hoped to get the chance.

Tom meanwhile, would be staying at the Dursleys residence seeing as Harry had no reason to bring a bag with her and he wasn't terribly interested in following her to the zoo.

At the entrance to the zoo the Dursleys bought Piers and Dudley large chocolate ice cream cones and a cheap lemon flavoured iced lolly for Harry. She savoured it more than either boy did their ice cream. They walked around the zoo, Harry once again lagging behind the others, as was typical for her. Even after two years and the companionship of Tom, she preferred it this way, as friendship with _muggles_ was hardly appealing.

They stopped at a small cafe and bought Dudley and Piers large meals while Harry was _generously_ given Dudley's first lunch that was "too small." After eating the fattening lunch, they headed for the reptile house, which Harry was terribly excited for, though she tried not to show it. When they arrived, she split off from the group looking for the snakes.

She found a large one that was sleeping and gently knocked on the glass to wake it.

"_Hello_," She hissed. "_Are you awake?_"

The snake's eyes snapped open and if possible, it looked at her with awe. "_A human who speaks my tongue!_" The snake hissed at her. "_All the other snakes will be jealous I met you, hatchling. What is your name?_"

"_Harriet. Harriet Potter._" She answered. "_My friend, Tom can also speak to snakes._"

"_Ah! How amazing, two speakers!_" The snake seemed overjoyed. "_Where is this other one?_"

"_He couldn't make it today. He had to stay at..._home." Harriet said, her distaste for the word clear. Privet Drive had never been home.

"_I see. Tell me speaker, can you get me out of here?_" The snake questioned.

"_I'm afraid not,_" she apologized. "_I don't know how and I'd get in trouble if I did._"

"_Hm... how disappointing._" And with that the snake went back to pretending to sleep, no matter what Harriet did.

Suddenly, Dudley shoved her out of the way so he could see the snake. Her magic lashed out in surprise, vanishing the glass of all the snake exhibits. Serpents were soon crawling along the ground looking to escape while muggles screamed and ran for help. The zoo employees tried their best to gather up the most poisonous snakes quickly before anyone was hurt, but there simply weren't enough of them to handle all the snakes at once.

The snake Harry had been speaking with slithered past her, hissing his thanks and appreciation to her. Amongst the chaos, Harry was the only one smiling.

-x-

The Dursleys had immediately left the zoo and returned home. Dudley was disappointed that his friend couldn't stay, but for all his whining his parents stood firm for once. Eventually, Dudley gave up and once Piers was gone their attention turned to Harry. The look in her uncle's eyes scared her as he made his way toward her. He roughly grabbed her by the arm and started dragging her upstairs to her room with Petunia following nervously behind.

Vernon opened her room and threw her in. She landed roughly on the hard floor and screamed in pain as her arm bent at a strange angle.

"Vernon!" Petunia screeched, appalled at her husband's behaviour. As bad as the girl was, they had promised to never become violent with her, and Vernon seemed to be too angry to remember.

"She deserves it, Pet!" Vernon growled. "She could have killed Dudley with that stunt!"

"It was an accident, Vernon. They said she can't help it!" Petunia pleaded.

"Don't be ridiculous, Pet! We've known for years that she can control it to some extent!" he countered.

Harry sat up and watched her uncle and aunt argue, her eyes a dark forest green. She stood and drew attention to herself.

"You will _never _treat me this way again." She promised dangerously, and suddenly Vernon was on the floor screaming.

"Stop! Stop!" Petunia screeched. "I know what he did was wrong, but please—"

Harry looked at her aunt, who swallowed nervously. She was upset with her husband's treatment of her niece, yes, but she still didn't want to see him in such agony. After a few moments, the young witch nodded and Vernon stopped screaming, but remained twitching on the floor. "He will be fine." She told Petunia.

"You're arm... I'll take you to the hospital." Petunia murmured. Harry shook her head and closed her eyes again. There was a noticeable crack as her arm righted itself and then she promptly fainted.

-x-

When she woke up the next morning Harry felt a dull ache in her arm. The last thing she remembered was her uncle throwing her to the floor of her room, but somehow she was neatly tucked into her bed. She sat up and looked at Tom, who was standing near the window.

"What happened?" she groaned.

"What do you remember about yesterday?" Tom asked in return.

"I-I set all the snakes in the zoo free by accident, and then when we came back home Uncle Vernon dragged me upstairs and threw me on the ground. I think I broke my arm, but it seems fine now..." Harry answered honestly.

"After you passed out I possessed you. Your aunt and uncle argued, your uncle against you and your aunt in defence of you. I used your magic to cause your uncle great pain, not dissimilar to the cruciatus curse for what he did. When I stopped I did my best to make your magic heal your arm before I could no longer sustain the possession. Your aunt moved you to your bed and tucked you in."

"Aunt Petunia defended me?" Harry asked doubtfully.

"Yes." Tom confirmed. "It would appear that while she doesn't like you, she doesn't believe you should be hurt."

"I see." The jade eyed girl murmured before standing up to walk towards Tom. She reached out and grasped his ghostly hand, feeling a faint touch as she squeezed it, and he squeezed back.

-x-

Petunia spent the next week refusing to let Harry do any of her usual chores, which would have been a relief if she had something else to occupy her time. She could only spend so much time reading and re-reading her books, and school was ending too. She understood why her aunt was being so nice. She felt terribly guilty about Harry being hurt, even if she hadn't done it herself and her husband paid for his crime. Vernon, meanwhile, avoided Harry like the plague. If she was in a room, he wouldn't enter. It caused dinner time to be awkward for Petunia and Dudley, until Harry volunteered to eat in her room. She had no interest in eating with the muggles any ways.

Harry knew it wouldn't last long, but she was hoping she'd get her Hogwarts letter while her aunt was still being as non-confrontational as possible. Tom told her it should be coming soon, but she wasn't so sure it would arrive when he predicted. She had spent the past few days sitting in the back garden waiting for an owl to swoop down and leave her letter, and each morning she checked the muggle post in case it came that way. Tom wasn't sure if someone would come to take her or not. Though she was a half-blood, she didn't grow up knowing about magic, so it's possible she would be treated as a muggleborn would.

It was Wednesday, July 3rd when her letter arrived. She had just finished breakfast and started on the dishes when Petunia told Dudley to check the post.

"Make Harriet do it, mum! I'm eating." He whined before shovelling a large serving of bacon in his mouth.

Petunia glanced at Harriet and was about to put her foot down and make Dudley get the post when Harriet smiled.

"I'll get the post, Aunt Petunia." Harriet offered helpfully. She sat down the dish towel she'd been using to dry the frying pan. Before Petunia could respond Harry was already on her way to the door.

When she opened the door she saw it. Laying on top of the muggle post was a letter encased in thick parchment and addressed with green ink. She grabbed the letter and shoved it in the waist band of her jeans and pulled her shirt down to cover it. It was one of the few times she was glad to have jeans rather than the dresses she preferred. Picking up the rest of the mail she walked back inside and handed it to her aunt. She finished up in the kitchen and all but ran back to her room.

"Tom! Tom! Guess what!" Harriet exclaimed in excitement, being careful to keep her volume at an acceptable level.

"You've decided I was right and we should kill your relatives?" He guessed, only half joking.

"No." She replied blankly. "We'd get caught. Wait until you're the supreme ruler of Wizarding England."

"Fair enough. Well then, what happened?"

"I got my Hogwarts letter!" she squealed.

Tom patted her head, causing the girl to shiver once again. She thought she'd be used to his cold touch by now, yet she was not. She wondered if she would ever be, or if he'd get a body before then. "Good. Open it."

She pulled her letter out of her waistband and really took it in for the first time.

"_Ms. H. Potter  
The Smallest Bedroom  
4 Privet Drive  
Little Whinging  
Surrey_"

She turned it over and peeled off the wax seal. She eagerly opened it and read her acceptance letter.

"_HOGWARTS SCHOOL __of__ WITCHCRAFT __and__ WIZARDRY_

_Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore_

(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,  
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)

_Dear Ms. Potter, _

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. _

_Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July. _

_Yours sincerely, _

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress_"

She set the letter on her bed and read the list of required supplies. She quickly saw that she had most of the necessary books, but still needed the rest of her supplies. She saw that Tom was indeed correct, no brooms until her second year. She thought it was rather unfair.

"I guess a trip to Diagon Alley is order, huh Tom?" Harry asked rhetorically.

"Indeed. We will go on your birthday, as a celebration of sorts." Tom told her.

"But that's so far away!" she whined.

"Would you like some cheese with that wine, dearest?" Tom teased.

Harry threw a pillow at him, though she knew it would just go through him.

-o-

AN: I appreciate all the favs, follows, and reviews so much. One reviewer was super sweet and apologized for forgetting to review chapter one! You guys rock. But I do want some feedback on my writing. Is the pacing okay? Do I get repetitive? Too much dialogue? What?

I didn't think I'd get this out today, but I took a nap after going shopping with my aunt and managed to write most of it this morning before I went. So yay! Still, eventually updates will slow down. Just warning.

I'm **still looking for a beta and brit picker.** I'm Canadian and I don't know all the terminology used in England. I'll do my best, but...

~KCE

Edited October 17th 2015


	5. Diagon Alley, Revisited

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 5: Diagon Alley, Revisited

-o-

"I got my Hogwarts letter." Harry announced over breakfast with Petunia, Dudley, and surprisingly Vernon, one morning. Her uncle was finally able to be in her presence so long as Petunia was there as well.

Petunia's face went ghost white, while her husband turned an ugly shade of puce. Before either of them could comment, Harry continued.

"I'll be getting my supplies soon. You don't have to worry about getting me to London. I'll be away most of the year, perhaps even for a portion of the summer holidays, so really, it's a win-win situation." She explained to her stunned relatives.

"How-how-how—" Petunia stuttered while Vernon's face scrunched up as if pained.

"Oh, I met a friend like me a few years ago in London. He explained _everything_ to me." Harriet chirped, enjoying her relatives' reactions. Tom stood behind her, a smirk on his face.

Petunia glanced at her husband before making a decision. "Fine. You can go. But don't expect us to pay for it!"

Harriet, who hadn't thought of the cost and who would pay since she had money, had no way to explain that without revealing she was rich to her greedy uncle.

Tom came to the rescue though and informed her that it was a public school, so there were no tuition fees and there was a fund for students who couldn't pay for supplies. She repeated this information to her relatives. Her aunt sniffed but didn't comment.

Dudley meanwhile had not even heard the conversation as he cared more about stuffing his face than his freak of a cousin.

-x-

It was July 17th, exactly two weeks before her 11th birthday. The morning dawned bright and early. Today was the day Harry was going to Diagon Alley. She convinced Tom it was best to go to the Alley before her birthday, as she hadn't an owl to send her reply back with.

Still grinning from her victory Harry skipped out of the house to her and Tom's spot with a scowling Tom sulking behind her. She had once again borrowed her aunt's makeup to cover up her distinctive scar. As per usual, once they arrived Tom possessed her and apparated them to a small, rarely used alley near The Leaky Cauldron. After arriving at their destination Tom left the young witch's body.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to that." The jade eyed girl commented while she shuddered. Each time she felt a heavy coldness come over and then nothing for several seconds. Though she knew what was happening, the blackouts still made her a bit anxious. She trusted Tom but he could do anything— make _her_ do anything—while he was possessing her.

That dark haired girl let the thought go as she walked into the dingy pub and made her way to the entrance of the alley. Her first stop was Wiseacre's Wizarding equipment shop. Tom advised her to pick up a trunk there first and store her purchases in it as she collected her supplies. She found a large trunk that was charmed to permanently be feather light and decided that was her best option considering she didn't have an adult to cast the spell on the trunk for her. She then picked out a brass telescope, and some crystal phials. She got a set of silver scales at Tom's insistence rather than the brass set the list requested. He informed her that the quality was simply better and it was easier to use, though more expensive. By the time she left the shop she had spent nearly 40 galleons.

"Hogwarts shopping is expensive," She commented to Tom quietly.

"Indeed," He agreed. "I was one of the students who was a recipient of the scholarship fund and to be honest I was short several things. I didn't have the hat and only two sets of second hand robes."

"Well, at least I have plenty to cover it, even if I am a bit wary of spending it." Harriet said awkwardly before quieting as she entered Potage's Cauldron shop. She quickly found a size 2 pewter cauldron and paid for it. Her next stop was the apothecary as it was right next door. She bought the deluxe potion kit at Tom's recommendation as she had quite the interest in potions after reading her textbook.

After finishing up at the apothecary she made her way to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. Inside a blonde pug faced girl stood on a stool while a young woman fitted her robes.

"Hogwarts, dear?" Another, older woman asked, to which Harry nodded. "Hop up on the stool then."

While Madam Malkin fitted her robes, the other girl turned to Harry.

"My name is Pansy Parkinson. What's yours?" she asked her.

"Harriet." she told the blonde. "But I prefer Harry." She mentally added that only Tom could call her Harriet without it bugging her. There was just something about him saying her full name that she liked.

"Your last name?" the pug faced girl inquired.

"That's a surprise." Harry grinned. She couldn't wait until people realized that she wasn't a boy.

"Humph. Probably a mudblood." Pansy dismissed. The attendant gasped at her language, but Pansy didn't look the least bit bothered.

"Half-blood, actually." Harry corrected while Tom glared at the girl for daring to call Harry such a name.

"I suppose that's a step up." Pansy granted. "But why won't you share your name?"

"You'll understand at the sorting." The dark haired girl promised. Her jade eyes were twinkling with amusement. Behind her Tom snorted.

"If you say so." Pansy replied sceptically as her robes were finished. She hopped off the stool, paid and left the shop.

It was ten more minutes before Harry was done and she was relieved. That woman was horrible with a needle. She kept poking Harry with it.

"Next time go to Twillfit and Tattings. They're more expensive, but the quality is usually better and you should receive better service there." Tom recommended. Harry nodded and made her way next door to Amanuensis Quills to pick up quills, parchment and ink.

Entering the store, she bumped into a bushy haired girl and knocked them both over. The sound of breaking glass could be heard as they both got covered in black ink. Luckily, Harry was wearing a black robe she had bought several weeks ago so the stain didn't show, but the other girl was wearing white.

"Oh my. I'm terribly sorry." The bushy haired stranger apologized. "I should have been watching where I was going."

Harry kneeled next to the girl and helped her pick up what was salvageable from her dropped supplies. "No, I should have been too. We're both at fault." she corrected. Tom lingered in the background watching the exchange closely.

"Befriend her. I believe she's muggleborn." Tom told her and she subtly nodded.

"My name is Harriet, but I prefer to be called Harry," the dark haired girl said as an introduction and stuck out her hand.

"Hermione Granger. Just Hermione is fine." The other girl introduced herself in turn. "I'm a muggleborn. What about you?"

"Half-blood." She informed the other girl. It would appear Tom was, unsurprisingly, correct. "My mum was muggleborn and my dad a pureblood. But I grew up with muggle relatives as my parents died when I was small."

"Oh! I'm terribly sorry to hear that." Hermione looked genuinely sympathetic, not pitying, but quickly changed the topic "Have you read any of the books yet? I can't wait to start on them. I bought several extra texts, like Hogwarts: A History."

"I think, Hermione," Harry began. "This is the start of a wonderful friendship."

-x-

They parted ways shortly afterwards, making plans to meet up on the train if possible. The only place left on Harry's list was the wand shop.

Having never been to Ollivander's before, Tom had to direct her to the southern side of the alley and to the shop at the very end. Peeling gold letters over the door read "Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C.." The shops sole display consisted of a dark wand lying on a purple pillow in the dusty window.

Harry pushed the door opened and entered, a jingling noise alerting Ollivander to her entrance.

"Ah, welcome, welcome, who do we have here? A muggleborn, hm?" Ollivander greeted her.

"Half-blood, actually." She corrected once again.

"Hm... strange... I usually recognize my former customers' offspring." Ollivander mused. "No matter, your name?"

"... Will you tell anyone else?" She asked suspiciously.

"Oh no. Of course not. Wand sales are a private matter. The ministry will be informed of course, but them alone." Ollivander answered her, rather surprised at her question.

"The ministry likely already knows you're a girl anyways, Harriet. They need to know your wand for identification purposes." Tom told her after Ollivander finished speaking.

"Alright." She replied to both her companion and the shop owner. "My name is Harriet Potter, but I prefer being called Harry."

Ollivander's eyes grew wide. "Surely you jest. Lily and James Potter had a son!"

Scowling, Harry informed him that she was indeed Lily and James' only child, indeed the famous Harry Potter, and indeed not amused.

"My apologies. To think, the entire magical community, wrong!" He laughed then; Harry thought it was a rather creepy sight. "Very well, let us begin."

Ollivander turned and pulled out a wand and told her to give it a wave. She did as instructed and the window cracked. He quickly pulled it out of her hands and handed her another. This time a pile of wands fell down. Things continued along these lines until he pulled out an eleven inch holly and phoenix feather wand. Harry grasped it and immediately knew it was the one. She waved it and lilac and blue sparks shot from the tip.

"Oh, bravo!" Ollivander applauded. "A very interesting selection. Curious even."

"Ask him why." Tom commanded, and so Harry did.

"The phoenix that gave that feather gave just one other. And it was the wand that gave you your famous scar that contained it." Ollivander explained. "I expect you shall do great things, much like the brother wand's master. Terrible things he did perhaps, but great."

Tom eyed Ollivander curiously, as if seeing him for the first time.

"Come Harriet. Let us leave." Tom turned and made his way to the door, Harry paid for her wand quickly and followed after him at a jog. He led her to the ice cream parlour, where she had a strawberry sundae.

"Is there anything else you need to do, dearest?" Tom asked her.

She eyed the other customers to make sure they were paying her no attention before answering. "I need some muggle clothes. Do you think I can get someone to shrink my trunk for a few hours while I do so?" she asked him.

"Try it yourself," Tom suggested. "If not, the bartender at The Leaky Cauldron likely will."

Harry nodded. She finished her ice cream and left to find her favourite place for disapparating. Instead of doing so, she focused on wanting her trunk to shrink. It took several minutes, much longer than it would have taken Tom, but she managed to do it. She shoved it in her bag and made her way to Gringott's to exchange her remaining galleons for pounds.

-x-

A half hour later she stepped into the streets of muggle London with Tom at her side. She resolved to find the nearest shopping mall or department store so she could buy all her things in one place. She spent perhaps a half hour wandering around the area before she found one.

Once she entered, she moved swiftly to the children's clothing section and began to pick out several dresses. The first was her favourite colour, lilac, with a black collar. She also grabbed a blue one, a pink one and a jade green one to match her eyes. Finished with the dresses, she went to look for jeans. While she preferred the former, she knew jeans were often more practical. Once finding three pairs, she moved on to tops with Tom trailing behind her feeling rather bored. He was no fan of shopping, but dutifully gave his opinion when asked as he felt it best to humour the girl. She picked out lilac, black and green tops before moving to the shoe section. She found a pair of simple Mary Jane's in her size and some black high top sneakers. She bought two pairs of each, one the right size and one two sizes bigger for when her feet grew. The last stop was undergarments, which she hastily picked out, her face burning as her companion watched her.

Finally finished with her muggle shopping spree, Harry headed to the front of the store to pay. The muggle cashier gave her a funny look since she was alone, but took her money regardless. Harry then walked out of the store weighed down with several bags. She struggled to carry them all as she looked for a good place to let Tom take her home. After what seemed to be hours but was really only twenty minutes Harry found a disused alley to disapparate from. Closing her eyes, she let Tom possess her to take her home.

When Harry returned home, she ran straight up to her room. She took a minute to unshrink her trunk before taking out her muggle clothes and packing them inside neatly inside her trunk.

-x-

"I can't believe you forgot to send the acceptance letter while we were first in Diagon Alley." Tom grumbled to Harry on the 30th of July. "Considering it was the only reason we went so early."

"I can't believe you didn't remind me!" Harry shot back. She was walking down Diagon Alley looking for the turn into Horizont Alley where the owl post office was. Seeing it just up ahead, she broke into a jog until she made it to the post office. She entered the building and went to speak to a teller.

"How much to send a letter to Hogwarts?" she asked digging in her bag for a galleon.

"Mail to Hogwarts is free for Hogwarts students." The lady told her kindly. "If you hand me your letter I can take care of it from here."

"Oh! Thank you!" Harry shot her a winning smile, something she had copied from Tom.

"No problem dearie. Cutting it a bit close though, hm?"

"Ah. I was in Diagon a few weeks ago and forgot to stop here." She admitted, and with that she left the post office.

-x-

Harry had spent the rest of the day exploring Horizont Alley. It contained businesses more than shops, but there were still a few places to buy things. By the time evening came, she had an idea.

"Tom, do you think I could get away with staying at The Leaky Cauldron until September 1st?" she asked her companion.

"Perhaps if you had a good story, considering you lack an adult." He answered easily.

"Like maybe my family kicked me out when I refused to go to regular school instead of Hogwarts?" she invented on the spot.

"Perhaps." Tom agreed. "That reminds me. I expect you to keep up with your math and science education."

"What?" Harry screeched indignantly, receiving a few weird looks. She blushed and ducked her head. "Why?" she asked more quietly.

"Math, physics and chemistry are important for understanding magical theory. Many don't realize it but theory often incorporates those three in some fashion. For example, understanding chemistry is imperative to do a full transfiguration and not just a cosmetic one." He explained to her.

"Ugh, fine." She agreed, not in the mood to fight. She was good at math at least, so that wouldn't be too bad. In science they hadn't really started in on physics or chemistry yet, at least not anything in depth.

Tom smirked victoriously.

-x-

She returned to Diagon Alley with her trunk shrunk in her pocket on her birthday. She's told her aunt that there was a chance she wouldn't be coming back until she was finished school next year, and her aunt nodded looking rather relieved. She entered The Leaky Cauldron and for the first time went to the bar.

"Excuse me, sir." She said to the bartender. "I'd like a room until September first, please."

"You here by yourself?" He asked warily. It wasn't often children tried to get a room alone.

"Yes, you see I need somewhere to stay until then because..." she trailed off.

"Yes, lass?" the bartender prompted.

"Well... my family—they're er... what did the professor call them? Um, muggles? They um... They said if I went to Hogwarts I'm not welcome at home any longer..." She explained sadly.

"A-ah. I see." Tom—the bartender, not her companion— replied, looking a bit shocked, but sympathetic. "Well lass, if you have a galleon, I'll let you stay for the month. Room and board included."

"Oh thank you sir! This means so much to me! I promise I'll repay you for this someday." The man was obviously a bleeding heart, giving her a deal like that.

"Ah, don't call me sir. Just Tom is fine."

"Alright, s—er— Tom." She purposely stuttered as she handed over a galleon. She was careful not to show how much money she actually had. Eleven year olds who were kicked out of home shouldn't have too much money.

"I'll show you to your room now. Just follow me." Tom-the-bartender told her as he started walking towards the stairs. She followed him up them as directed with Tom-her-friend looking on proudly in the background.

-x-

Harry spent the rest of her summer lazing around her room at The Leaky Cauldron, talking to her Tom and exploring the alleys. She desperately wanted to go to Knockturn Alley, but Tom made her promise not to until he had a body and could go with her. She reluctantly agreed.

The 31st of August was spent packing and repacking her belongings into her trunk. She was so excited that she just had to do something to occupy herself other than talking to her companion.

"Will you stop that?" Tom asked her annoyed. "It was fine the first time."

"I know but I'm just so excited! I don't know what else to do!" she whined.

"How about I tell you about where the name Voldemort came from?" Tom offered.

"Oh!" Harry exclaimed. "I've been wondering."

"Grab the journal and write my full name in it." He commanded.

"Alright." Harry went to fetch the diary from her bag and pulled out a quill and ink as well. "Tom Marvolo Riddle, right?"

"Yes."

She wrote the name in legible, but wobbly writing in the diary. She was unused to writing with a quill. Suddenly, the letters started moving and rearranged themselves into a new sentence.

_I AM LORD VOLDEMORT_

"Huh. So it's an acronym?" she asked rhetorically. "Cool. What does Voldemort mean any ways."

"First of all, it's an anagram, not acronym. The "t" is silent." Tom lectured. "And it's French. It means either "Flight of Death" or "Flight from Death." Considering I wished to be immortal, I thought it fitting."

"Will you still be immortal when you get a body?" Harry asked cautiously, fearing his answer.

"Yes." She let out a sigh of relief at his words. "So long as at least one horcrux—soul container— exists, I shall be tied to this world. The same goes for my other self, unfortunately. Though I have a plan for dealing with him."

"What is it?" This was the first time her companion had spoken of what he planned to do with his other self aside from mentioning he would not join him.

Tom approached her and leaned over so his face was only centimetres from her own. "That, dearest, is a secret for now."

-o-

AN: A bit short, but it seemed like a good place to end it. Next chapter will cover the train ride and hopefully the sorting, at the very least. I will start on it tonight. :)

A note about currency. Currently the exchange rate from pound to galleon is 6:1. Why? Because JKR said about 5 pounds to the galleon, but I messed up last chapter and had her turn 60 in for 10 galleons. However pounds mean nothing to me, sadly. So to me 1 galleon is 10 dollars. USD, CAD, or AUD is up to you. For pricing I used pottermore prices.

Still looking for a beta and brit picker! As one reviewer asked, I believe that brit picker is an actual term, as I've seen in used several times on this site.

Thanks for all the feedback guys. I love you. 3

Best,

~KCE

Edited October 17 2015


	6. A Different Sort

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 6: A Different Sort

-o-

September 1st dawned neither bright nor early for Harriet Potter. She had spent half the night pacing the length of her room, too excited to sleep. And now she was going to pay for it. It was past ten 'o'clock when she woke up to a cold chill across her entire body. She opened her eyes and saw Tom's forest green ones looking back at her. He was the source of the cold—he was laying on top of her. Seeing that she was finally awake, Tom crawled off her and stood.

"Wh-wh-wh—" Harry stuttered. Her face was red as a tomato.

"You wouldn't wake up." Tom told her nonchalantly, as if lying on top of her was no big deal. "I tried yelling, but you didn't stir. You reacted a bit to my touch, but not enough to wake up so I thought that if I caused your entire body to feel the cold of it you would wake."

"Still, you didn't have to-to-to... do _that_." She protested, her face still flaming.

"It worked didn't it? Now stop wasting time, you have less than an hour to get to the train."

"EH!?" Harry exclaimed. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?!"

She scrambled to find her Hogwarts uniform, sans robe, and ran to the bathroom. She took a quick five minute shower before dressing. She took a few minutes to cover her scar with makeup and quickly ran her brush through her hair, figuring she could brush it better on the train. She quickly packed up the last of her things and slung her bag with Tom's diary in it over her shoulder. She quickly grabbed her trunk and ran downstairs. The whole time, Tom watched in amusement.

Harry asked the bartender to shrink her trunk and he acquiesced. She proceeded to run out the door of the pub throwing a "thank you" over her shoulder and stuffing her trunk in her bag. She was pelted by the falling rain and cursed. Just her luck. Thunder cracked above her as she tried to flag down a taxi to take her to King's Cross Station. It was already nearing quarter to. Finally one stopped.

"I need to get to King's Cross well before eleven 'o'clock." She told the driver and handed him a wad of cash. "Here's a fifty pound tip. Make it happen."

The driver nodded and took off before Harry had buckled herself in. He got her there in record time, even if he had to break a few speed limits.

She exited the taxi after hastily paying the driver. She waved thanks over her shoulder as she ran into the station.

"Platform nine and three quarters is just through the barrier between platforms nine and ten." Tom reminded Harry.

She quickly made her way to the barrier, but hesitated in front of it. She poked it with her forefinger and was amazed when it disappeared inside the barrier.

"I don't know why you needed to test it." Tom rolled his eyes. Harry ignored him and walked through. She ran towards the gleaming scarlet train, she flashed her ticket and got on with just minutes to spare.

She hadn't yet found a compartment when the train started moving. She saw most were full of upper years and was too nervous to intrude. She looked for Hermione, but stopped when she saw Pansy Parkinson sitting alone in a compartment.

"Is it okay if I sit here?" Harry asked as she entered with Tom following behind her.

"Harriet, right?" Pansy asked before nodding her head. "You can sit."

"Thanks. Just Harry, though. I was going to meet up with a girl I met in Diagon Alley, but I made it to the train really late."

"What girl?" Pansy asked.

"A muggleborn named Hermione Granger." Pansy's nose wrinkled in distaste. "Don't be like that, she was nice enough. Eager to learn. Plus I have an ulterior motive."

"Oh? What?" Pansy asked intrigued.

"Well I did a blood test at Gringott's, and it showed my family tree back several generations. My mother was muggleborn, but it showed that four generations ago was a squib with the name Parkinson, and three generations ago was a squib from the MacDougal line as well." Harriet explained. "I want to see if it's the same for other muggleborns."

Pansy's nostrils flared. "How dare you imply the Parkinson's bore a squib!"

"They did. I'm proof." Harry shrugged. "Doesn't matter if you believe me, it still happened. Look at it this way, we're related, and it's not like I'm announcing it to the world that your family had a squib. I'm sure most lines do."

"Well... I suppose. As long as you don't go advertising it." Pansy agreed grudgingly. "You seem an alright sort. What house do you suppose you'll be sorted in?"

"I'm not sure." Harry grinned at the change of topic. It was a relief to talk about something lighter. "My parents were Gryffindors, but I'm not sure it suits me."

"I'm sure I'll be in Slytherin." Pansy puffed out her chest. "My entire family has been. I suppose Ravenclaw would be alright, but I'm not terribly studious. Hufflepuff or Gryffindor would be a disgrace, though."

"I wouldn't say it's a disgrace to be a Hufflepuff... Hard work and loyalty are admirable traits. So are courage and boldness. I guess."

"Maybe, but cunning and ambition are much more admirable." Pansy countered.

"Perhaps." Harry shrugged. "At least Hufflepuffs would make good minions, you have to admit."

Pansy giggled.

-x-

The rest of the journey was spent giggling and gossiping. Pansy thought it atrocious that Harry was so behind on all the pureblood gossip and sought to rectify that immediately. When the sweets trolley passed through Harry bought some of her favourites, chocolate frogs and cauldron cakes while Pansy bought liquorice wands and sugar quills.

When they were getting close to the school, the girls opened their trunks and put on their Hogwarts robes.

Tom was quiet the entire journey. He decided it was best to let Harriet form her own alliances and friendships without his interference. So far he approved of her choices. The Parkinson girl was a typical pureblood who could provide his companion with information on who is who and would be good at spreading information. The Granger girl seemed like she'd do her best to fit into the magical world, unlike most mudbloods, and was studious. He was interested to see who was in her ancestry. While he still wasn't very fond of mudbloods, she'd serve her purpose for Harriet and him.

Tom decided he would tell Harriet the beginning stages of his plans this evening after the feast. He would be erecting silencing wards around her bed so they could chat in safety. It was swiftly approaching Halloween and the night he'd get a body, and the more time Harriet had to learn his story, the better.

Before Tom and Harry knew it the train was pulling to a stop.

"First years!" A large man boomed. "First years over here!"

Harry and Pansy glanced at each other warily.

"He's huge!" Pansy whispered. "And so scruffy! I can't believe they let someone like that work here."

"He's a half-giant." Tom informed Harry. "He was expelled some fifty years ago. I'll tell you that story later, dearest."

Harry repeated the information Tom gave her and Pansy looked horrified. None the less, they followed the half-giant to The Black Lake and got in the rickety boats as directed. They were joined by a chubby blond boy named Neville Longbottom and a rather pretty redhead named Susan Bones. Neville seemed a bit nervous, but managed to hide it behind a confident façade while Susan was more relaxed. They were silent for the journey until they saw the castle. The sound of gasps filled the air and Tom smiled at Harry.

"Welcome home."

-x-

The large man led the first years into a hall with a stern looking woman standing at the end.

"First years, Professor McGonagall." He told her.

"Yes, thank you Hagrid." She replied before turning to the students. "You are about to be sorted into one of the four noble houses, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Slytherin. Each house has its own admirable qualities. Please follow me in single file."

The students did as instructed as she led them to the great hall. Harry gasped when she saw the ceiling. She heard a familiar voice say it was enchanted to look like the sky outside, which Harry thought was quite brilliant. At the front of the hall a stool stood with a hat perched on top. It opened its brim and started singing.

Harry wasn't very interested in the song and paid more attention to Tom. She watched him look around the hall, his face and posture completely and utterly relaxed. His gaze settled on the Slytherin table and Harry knew where she wanted to go.

After the hat stopped singing Professor McGonagall took out a roll of parchment and began calling names. For the most part Harry ignored, only listening for familiar names. She clapped when Hermione was sorted into Gryffindor, followed by Neville Longbottom not too long after. When McGonagall reached the P's Harry paid more attention. She watched Pansy be sorted in her desired house and two identical girls go to Ravenclaw and Gryffindor respectively. Perks, Sally-Anne was sorted into Hufflepuff and then McGonagall called out the name she was waiting for.

"Potter, Harriet." The stern looking woman's lips twitched into a ghost of a smile before she forced a serious look on her face. Harry deduced that the woman knew she was a girl from the beginning.

Whispers filled the hall as Harry strode confidently strode towards the hat. She sat on the stool and McGonagall placed the hat on her head.

"My, my, this is interesting," the hat commented. "A pleasure to meet you Harriet Potter, a pleasure indeed. You will most definitely be an interesting sort."

"You won't tell anyone what you see, right?" she asked, suddenly feeling worried that the hat might disclose the existence of Tom to the professors.

"Oh, child of course not! Even if I could, I wouldn't." Harry sighed in relief.

"Let's get about sorting me then. Slytherin, please." Harry requested, causing the hat to laugh.

"Ah, simply delightful. I can't remember the last time a student demanded instead of begging."

"Yeah, so... Slytherin please?" she was not to be distracted.

"Are you sure? Gryffindor would suit you quite well, child. You have plenty of courage, and not a bad mind, either. A thirst to prove yourself as well." The hat told her.

"No." Harry said blankly. She wanted Slytherin, not Gryffindor. Or Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw for that matter.

"Very well, it's all here in your head. Yes... I believe you will be great in... SLYTHERIN!" the hat shouted the last word to the rest of the hall. "Come see me again sometime. You're quite the character."

Harry grinned and hopped off the stool. She placed the hat in McGonagall's hands and made her way towards the table occupied by students adorned in green and silver. Tom nodded to her proudly and followed her over. The table had burst into applause when her sorting was announced. She sat by Pansy, who had waved her over while Tom opted to stand behind her.

"Congratulations." He whispered into her ear causing her to shiver.

"Harriet Potter? Harry Potter? The famous Harry Potter?" Pansy asked, to which Harry nodded. "But the books, everyone says you're a boy!"

"I know. It was weird when I found out. I grew up with muggles see, so I didn't know I was famous." Harry explained. "I'm guessing my family called me Harry, and when word got out that Harry Potter defeated the dark lord they assumed I was a boy. I don't know why no one corrected people though. Probably for protection purposes."

By the time she finished explaining the entire house was paying attention to her rather than the sorting, only clapping unenthusiastically when they heard the hat sort another Slytherin.

"So why didn't you tell me your last name?" Pansy asked. "I mean, you could have explained earlier."

"Well... I wanted to see the shock on everyone's face, so I didn't want to risk it getting out before I got the opportunity." Harry admitted.

"But where's your scar? I saw your forehead and you don't have one." At this everyone was staring at her forehead. Before they could call her a liar, as she guessed they were about to, she took a napkin and dabbed it in water. She then rubbed it on her forehead, removing the makeup covering her scar.

"I've been covering it with makeup." She explained. She pulled back her bangs to display her scar proudly.

The food suddenly appeared on the table and the Slytherins realized they'd missed the headmaster's speech.

"Not that it matters," a blond boy commented. "Who cares what the old goat has to say? My father says he's letting the school go to the dogs."

"Yeah, that's Dumb-old-whore for you." An older Slytherin replied, causing Harry to choke on thin air and Tom to chuckle.

"What are you, a fan of his?" the blond boy sneered. "Perfect Potter, sorted into Slytherin. He must be devastated."

"No, I simply was surprised at the name for him. I think it suits him quite well." She retorted. She eyed Tom and silently told him to quit glaring at the blond brat.

"Not a Dumbledore fan, eh?" The Slytherin boy from earlier said and held out his hand. "Perhaps you'll fit in here better than expected. The name's Flint. Marcus Flint."

"Harriet Potter. But I prefer Harry." She replied taking his hand and giving it a firm shake.

-x-

"Look at the head table." Tom commanded, and Harry did as told. "The man with the greasy black hair has been giving you strange looks all throughout dinner. Be wary of him."

Harry bobbed her head in understanding as she took one last bite of treacle tart before the food disappeared and they were ushered to their common room. Harry followed the prefects down to the dungeons until they stood before a blank wall.

"Parselmouth." The prefect said and the wall slid open. The students began to file in to the room, the first years being some of the last to enter.

Large windows displayed the depths of The Black Lake, filtering in a green sort of light. A fireplace stood between two windows and green lanterns hung from the ceiling. The room was full of low backed black and dark green leather sofas and arm chairs with dark wood cupboards and tables. Tapestries featuring famous Slytherins adorned the stone walls. In the centre of the room the older students gathered with the prefects standing up front.

"All right, firsties, gather 'round." A female prefect called. "My name is Gemma Farley. The head of house, Professor Snape, shall be here shortly. In the mean time, I'll go over a few rules.

"First of all, if you're going to break the rules, don't get caught. Second, outside the house we show a united front. Keep all infighting in the common room. I'm not saying you have to pretend to be best friends, but just don't antagonize each other in public. Third, curfew is nine 'o'clock for first and second years and eleven 'o'clock for everyone else. Curfew ends at five a.m., don't get caught outside the common room between those times. You are expected to treat professors and staff with respect. Failing to do so results in point loss and detention, this reflects badly on Slytherin as a whole. You are to do all your assignments. If you have trouble talk to an older student or a professor. No magic is to be used in the corridors. If you have any problems with other students you are to report it to—"

"Me." The man with greasy hair from dinner interjected. Harry hadn't noticed him entering the room. "I am Professor Severus Snape. I am your potions professor as well as your head of house. I will not tolerate bullying. I will not tolerate "pranking" either. You are to treat me with respect. I will not remove points in public unless absolutely necessary, but you'll find that in private I am not so lenient. I tend to favour our house as the other professors are biased against us. I will take your side because you'll be hard pressed to find another professor who will. If you need anything, my office hours are on the notice board, as is the current password and the next password. The password is changed every two weeks. Do your best to familiarize yourselves with it. That is all."

The man turned and stalked out of the common room, his robes billowing behind him.

"That is so cool." Harry whispered to Pansy, who giggled. Tom rolled his eyes.

"As you can see," one of the male prefects began. "Professor Snape is a very blunt, no nonsense sort of man. You'll do well to stay on his good side."

"What he said about the other professors being biased is true. They will always take the word of a Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Gryffindor over the word of a Slytherin, even if we tell the truth.

"Now, first year girls! Follow me to your dorm." Gemma continued.

"Boys, you're with me!" called the male prefect who'd spoken earlier.

Harry followed Gemma down the hall to the right of the common room entrance. Gemma stopped just in front of the second door on the left. A sign that read "First Years" hung on the door.

"This will be your dorm for your years at Hogwarts. Every year you will have the same dorm room. It's getting late. I suggest you unpack and get ready for bed. Classes start tomorrow. Breakfast begins at five 'o'clock and first class is at nine 'o'clock. Your schedules will be passed out at half past eight in the Great Hall."

The six Slytherin girls nodded and entered their dorm.

Inside the room sat six large four poster beds adorned with silver and green bedding. The walls were plain and windowless. Next to each bed sat a dark wood night stand on one side and a matching wardrobe on the other.

"Take the bed in the far corner." Tom instructed. "It'll be more private."

Harry nodded and made her way towards it. As she sat down on it her trunk appeared at the foot of the bed. She was in the middle of unpacking her clothes when a girl with bleach blonde hair and too much makeup interrupted her. Harry thought her name was Daphne Greengrass.

"Excuse me, that was going to be _my_ bed." She said in a nasally voice.

"Well too bad, it is Harry's now." Pansy defended her new friend.

"I suppose I'm better off without it, now that it's been contaminated with halfblood filth."

Five sets of eyes turned and glared at the rude girl. Not only had Harry, Tom and Pansy turned to glare at the girl but so did Tracy Davis and Sophie Roper.

"You better watch your mouth, Greengrass. Half of us here are halfbloods." Tracy warned before turning back to the bed she'd claimed.

"Presumptuous twit." Tom muttered under his breath. "Ignore her, dearest."

Harry nodded. She finished moving her clothes from her trunk to her wardrobe and pulled out her pyjamas. She ran to the bathroom to shower and change before returning and crawling into her bed.

"I'll need to borrow your body to cast the silencing ward." Tom informed her. She nodded her head and closed her eyes.

Opening her now forest green eyes, the witch flicked her wand. A silver light shot out of it and encased her in a large bubble before fading to nothing. She closed her eyes once again, and this time when they opened they were back to their regular jade colour.

She crossed her legs and grabbed a pillow to hug while Tom reclined against the headboard.

"So what's the plan?" she asked him.

"When I get my new body I'll need to establish an identity. I've decided to pretend to be my own grandson." Tom informed her. "My name will be Tom Marcus Riddle. Dumbledore is less likely to believe it's me if I use my own first name seeing as he knows how much I've always disliked it. I'll be named after my father, who was a half-blood like his father before him. My paternal grandmother will take some research. I'll likely try to find a half-blood witch who disappeared at a convenient time. I'll find a half blood who died about 17 years ago to be my mother that died shortly after naming me. She left my father after finding out who _his_ father was. I grew up with muggles until I was ten and my father found me. He then home schooled me like his mother had home schooled him. Because of his family history my father was very reclusive and didn't get out much. His name was Marcus Tom."

"How long did it take you to come up with all that?" Harry asked.

"Just a few minutes, why?" Tom smirked. Harriet huffed at his teasing. He loved to rub his genius in her face.

"Any ways, that's easy enough to remember: your own grandson, half blood, childhood spent amongst muggles. Keeping things similar to your own story, huh?"

"Indeed. Life will be simpler that way, dearest. I'll be altering my appearance somewhat of course. Likely turning my eyes blue and my hair blond." Harry tried to picture him like that but failed.

"It's difficult to picture you looking different." She told him.

"Is that so?" Tom asked casually, not really caring for the answer. "Any ways, I wish for you to speak of me to your housemates."

"What do you want me to tell them?" her interest was piqued. She hadn't expected this.

"Tell them of your friend, Tom whom you met in London. Tell them I'm a half-blood, and introduced you to magic. Share my philosophies with them and mention I'm looking to get into politics."

"You're going into politics?!"Harry screeched, looking rather put out. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I honestly hadn't thought to." Tom answered patiently. "You have to understand, dear Harriet, that I am not used to sharing my plans until those involved need to know. If you wish to know my plans ahead of time it's best to ask me, otherwise it likely won't occur to me to inform you."

"I asked about your plans for your other self and you didn't tell me." Harry challenged, not believing him.

"Because they aren't finalized." Tom retorted. "For my plan to be viable I'll need to do a lot of research and create a spell or ritual. I'm not promising to always share my plans, Harriet. There are times you're better off not knowing."

"Fine. But you don't get to be let in on all my plans either then." she pouted.

"That's perfectly fine, dearest. Now go to sleep."

-x-

Harry woke the next morning to a cold sensation on her shoulder and a deep voice in her ear.

"It's time to get up Harriet. There's much to do today." Tom whispered in her ear.

"Urgh. What time is it?" she moaned in response.

"Nearly quarter after five, my dear." Tom answered. "I have much to show you before class begins."

The young witch moaned again and tried to go back to sleep, but soon felt a cold sensation cover her entire body as Tom laid on her once again. She shrieked and sat up. Tom stood with smirk. It was a good thing he had placed a silencing ward the night before.

"Not fair."

"Well, I suppose you could sleep a bit longer... if you don't want me to show you around the castle at all today..." Tom threatened teasingly.

"I'm up! I'm up!" Harry cried, throwing off her covers. She quickly got out of bed and rummaged through her wardrobe for her uniform before retreating to the bathroom to put it on and brush her teeth and hair.

When she exited the washroom she placed her textbooks in her bag and went to the common room. She scanned the room for Tom, finding him hiding in a dark alcove. He motioned for her to come to him.

"This, is a secret that few know, and even fewer can take advantage of." He pointed at the wall.

"What? A wall?" Harry's tone was sarcastic. "I'm sure no one else has noticed its presence."

"Don't be daft. See this snake marking?" She took a closer look and indeed did see a snake engraved in the wall. "It marks a passageway only available to parselmouths. Simply say _Passage to_ and the name of where you want to go and it'll take you to the exit nearest to there. Try it. Say "_Passage to great hall._""

Harry repeated the phrase but nothing happened. She poked the wall and wasn't terribly surprised to see her finger go through. Nodding at Tom, she entered the passage only to slip and start sliding down a long slide.

"Damn it, Tom!" she screamed as she slid further and further down. "You could have warned me!"

"Sorry, dearest, it ah, _slipped_ my mind." He chuckled.

"That was _so_ not funny, Tom." She mumbled exiting the passage. Tom led her the rest of the ways to the Great Hall, which was closer than she expected. Once there, she sat down at the Slytherin table. Pancakes, bacon, sausage, porridge, and fruit appeared on the table. She took a stack of three pancakes, covered them with syrup and blueberries, and began to eat.

Once finished, she took a minute to observe the hall. So far, the only teachers at the head table were Professors Snape and McGonagall. She looked around and saw that she was the only student in the entirety of the Great Hall. Feeling out of place, she stood up to leave. Tom led her back to the common room the normal way this time, pointing out landmarks to help her remember the way. By the time she arrived she was fairly confident she could make it back to the Great Hall without his help or use of Slytherin's passage.

It was still only quarter to six, so she pulled out her history book and started reviewing. By six thirty students started trickling down into the common room. Most were surprised to see her already up and gave her strange looks, but she ignored them and continued reading. By seven she decided it was a good idea to go wake Pansy and take her to the Great Hall.

Pansy grumbled about getting up so early, but eventually made her way out of bed and to the shower. For the first fifteen minutes Harry and Tom waited patiently. After a half hour they were a little annoyed. By the time an hour had passed they were both severely annoyed and slightly curious about what could take so long.

"Did she die?" Tom asked her, causing her to let out strangled noise.

"Tom!" she hissed. "Don't be so morbid."

"Sorry, my dear girl, but it's part of my charm."

"Well you can shove your charm up— "

"Harriet?" Pansy called as she exited the bathroom. "Who are you talking to?"

"Er. No one. Just mumbling to myself, you know?" Harry glared at Tom as she wondered how much Pansy had heard. Hopefully not enough to think she was crazy.

"If you say so..." Pansy allowed. "C'mon let's go eat."

"I actually already ate, but I still have to go to the Great Hall for my schedule. Farley said they would be handed out at half past eight, right?"

"Right. Let's find an older student to lead the way." Pansy suggested.

"No need, I'm sure I have it memorized." Or Tom would tell her if she was about to mess up. Either way, she'd get them there for sure.

-x-

With nothing better to do, Harry observed Pansy and the other Slytherins eat. The girls tended to eat rather daintily and the boys at least had table manners, unlike her uncle and cousin. She saw a prefect walking down the table handing out schedules and waited eagerly for hers.

"Here ya go." The prefect told her. "Looks like you've got potions first. The first class is usually just theory though, so no worries about needing your kit and cauldron."

"Thanks." Harry smiled appreciatively.

"Grab your friend, dear. I'll take you to the potions classroom. It's in the dungeons." Said Tom.

"C'mon Pansy, let's go to potions!"

"Wait! I don't have my books with me. I need to stop by the common room." Pansy protested.

"You have to pass the common room to get to the potions classroom." Tom informed her and she relayed the information to her friend.

Pansy nodded and agreed to go with her. They walked until they reached the wall that opened up to the Slytherin common room. Pansy dashed inside quickly whilst Harry waited outside.

"Saying "open" in parseltongue will also grant you access to the common room in case you forget the password."Tom mentioned as they waited, though his companion didn't get a chance to respond due to Pansy's exit from the common room.

"Which way, again?" Pansy asked.

"This way," said Harry who was already following Tom down the corridor.

She hoped potions class would go well.

-o-

AN: Well. Almost 5K words. :D This chapter was a lot easier to write than the last. I don't know why. First year has officially commenced. Feel free to send me suggestions of things you want to see in this story. I can't promise to incorporate them, but I promise to consider them. Especially for second year because at the moment it's like second year? Plot what plot?

Also, I found a beta from the sounds of things! Give a round of applause for starshipwarbird from tumblr! This chapter is unbeta'd so far, but I'll be replacing things with the beta'd versions slowly until my beta is caught. Sadly, updates will slow down because of this, because my beta likely doesn't have the spare time I do. I hope the better quality makes up for the additional time though.

Aramislovertw also agreed to let me know if any American/Canadianisms seep into the story and answer any questions about things in Britain I might have. So big thanks to them!

Best,

~KCE

Edited October 17th 2015


	7. A Matter of Class

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 7: A Matter of Class  
-o-

"Hermione!" Harry waved the aforementioned girl over to her table. "Come sit with us!"

Pansy looked ready to protest, but Harry shot her a dark glare and she remained quiet, though a disgruntled look graced her face. Hermione too looked hesitant but dutifully made her way over.

"Sorry I didn't sit with you on the train," Harry apologized. "I was really late and didn't want to search the whole train for you."

"It's okay." Hermione forgave her easily. She had feared that Harry had changed her mind about being friends.

"Oh! This is Pansy Parkinson." Harry pointed to the blond girl. "We met in Madam Malkins."

"It's nice to meet you." Hermione said politely and held out her hand. Pansy reluctantly took it.

"A pleasure, I'm sure."

"You never told me you were Harry Potter!" Hermione accused. "Though I'm a bit confused about why all the books referred to you as a boy..."

"I never told anyone I was Harry Potter." Harry shrugged. "And books are wrong. It happens."

Hermione looked scandalized and ready to protest, but realized it would be fruitless, all things considered.

Before they could converse further the door slammed open and Severus Snape made his way to the front of the class and immediately started taking roll call. He paused at Harry's name and looked like he wanted to comment but reigned it in and continued until he called on Zabini, Blaise.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion making," Professor Snape began. His voice was quiet but he had the entire class entranced. "As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses... I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death—if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach."

Professor Snape turned to Harry. "Potter! What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

She didn't answer immediately, instead taking a moment to think. If she remembered correctly, this was covered in the introduction to her potions books. "The Draught of Living Death, sir."

"Indeed." Snape paused. "And if I were to ask you to find a bezoar, where would you look?"

"The stomach of a goat, sir."

"Explain its use." Snape challenged.

"It is an antidote to most poisons."

"The difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?"

"Nothing sir. They're the same plant, also known as aconite."

"Name an ingredient of the wiggenweld potion."

"Err... I- I don't know. I don't think that was covered in the textbook." Harry admitted.

"True." Professor Snape agreed. "Very well, 10 points to Slytherin for answering most of my questions correctly."

Harry let out a sigh of relief. Being singled out like that terrified her. She wondered why Professor Snape did so. Tom also did not look too happy with her treatment, but knew there was nothing he could do at the moment. If the professor continued however, he'd make sure to make him regret it.

The rest of the class was spent copying notes off the board and practising different methods of preparing ingredients. Most of the purebloods seemed to have some instruction in this already, however others like the Weasley boy seemed to be as new to it as Harry and Hermione were.

"On Wednesday we will begin preparing the boil cure potion. I suggest you study it in your potion books beforehand." Snape advised. "Dismissed!"

Harry was the first to have her things packed and be out the door. She didn't mind the class so much as the teacher. He seemed to dislike her for some reason, though he tried to hide it.

She checked her schedule and saw she had transfiguration next. She turned and asked her Gryffindor friend what class she had and was promptly informed that it was defence against dark arts. They went their separate ways once they left the dungeon and Tom led Harry and Pansy to the transfiguration room.

"How do you know the way everywhere?" Pansy asked her.

"A magician never tells her secrets, my friend." Harry teased, avoiding the question.

"What?" Pansy's brow scrunched up in confusion.

"Sorry. Muggle saying. We're almost there."

Harry entered the classroom and saw that the teacher was once again absent, though a cat sat on the desk. Her and Pansy took a seat near the front of the class and took out their textbooks, quills, and parchment, anticipating note taking.

Soon the rest of the Slytherins and the Hufflepuffs filtered into the classroom. The students conversed as they waited for the teacher to appear. The beginning of class came and went without the teacher entering the class. Two Hufflepuffs ran into the classroom almost ten minutes late and commented about being lucky the teacher was not there yet. The cat on the desk leapt off the desk and transformed midair into Professor McGonagall. The students gaped.

"I'm afraid that's not the case, Smith." McGonagall frowned. "Would you care to tell me why you're almost ten minutes late to my class? Should I transfigure one of you into a wristwatch?"

"We-we got lost." A boy named Ernie MacMillan admitted sheepishly.

"A map then."

With that, McGonagall began class. She started by having them take notes as Pansy and Harry had anticipated. She lectured on the dangers of transfiguration as well as the necessity of incantations and wand movements. She told them of the differences between animate to animate, inanimate to inanimate, inanimate to animate, and animate into inanimate transfiguration. She demonstrated an inanimate to animate transfiguration by turning the desk into a pig. Inanimate to inanimate was the easiest to do, and inanimate to animate was the most difficult. She spoke of the different things they'd learn that year, including turning matches to needles, mice to snuffboxes and the switching spell.

Once finished her lecture, she passed out the aforementioned matches to be turned into needles and demonstrated the spell, emphasizing the incantation and wand movements. She had them practice as a class before she turned them loose on the matchsticks.

Harry muttered the spell and jabbed her wand at the matchstick. It became a shiny silver, but still looked like a match.

"You pronounced it wrong." Tom told her before correcting her. She nodded and tried again. This time she'd done it.

"No way!" Pansy gasped. "How did you do that so fast, Harry?"

"I don't know." Harry shrugged. "I just used the spell and wanted it to happen. I learned early on that magic responds well to our wants."

"Where did you learn that?" Pansy asked.

"That would be telling." Harry winked. Before Pansy could protest McGonagall wandered over and saw Harry's needle.

"Ah, look here everyone," she said picking up the needle. "Miss Potter has done it. Very nice work. Ten points to Slytherin. It would seem you have your father's talent for transfiguration."

She gave Harry a rare smile and continued on.

"No way!" Pansy whispered. "I heard she almost never gives out points to Slytherin."

"Well, it sounds like she was fond of my dad, so maybe that's why." Harry guessed.

"Maybe."

Harry spent the rest of the class helping Pansy and Tracy Davis with the transfiguration. By the end of class Pansy's match was silver and metal, though it lacked the eye of the needle. Tracy's had the eye and felt like a needle, but otherwise resembled a match. Still, it was more progress than anyone else had made. They began packing up their books when McGonagall dismissed them. Harry told Pansy to go on ahead as she had some things to speak to McGonagall about. Pansy nodded, assuming she had some advanced question to ask, though that was far from the truth.

"Professor?" Harry called hesitantly. "May I speak with you about something?"

"Of course Miss Potter. How may I help you?"

"I was wondering if you could tell me anything about my parents. You were their head of house, right?"

"Indeed, I was." McGonagall smiled. "Here, take a seat. I don't know as much as their friends would know, but I think I have some interesting things to tell you. You look like a female version of your father, though with your mother's eyes."

Harry listened with rapt attention as McGonagall told her about her parents. Apparently her mother excelled at charms and potions while her father was near prodigy level in transfiguration.

"Your mother was very kind and unprejudiced. She had friendships beyond house lines and cared greatly for others. James was quite the prankster, much like the Weasley twins. He was always getting himself stuck in detention. He loved quidditch and played as a chaser on the house team." McGonagall told her. "At first Lily cared little for James, but he adored her from the beginning. He was always trying to win her over and usually failing. Eventually he matured and Lily gave him a chance. The rest, you could say, is history."

"Do you know where I could find pictures of them, ma'am?" Harry asked desperately.

"I don't have any myself, but I could write to some people and see if they can send copies for you." McGonagall offered.

"That would be great! Do you know anyone I could ask for more about my parents?"

"...I suppose you could ask Severus." The professor admitted.

"Professor Snape? He knew my parents?" Harry gaped.

"Yes. He and your mother were childhood friends, I believe. Though I'd avoid asking about your father. They did not get along well."

"I'll keep that in mind. Thank you professor.

-x-

Harry hurried to the Great Hall and ate a quick lunch of soup and sandwich before grabbing Pansy and heading for defence against the dark arts. Usually the class was on the third floor corridor, but Tom informed her Dumbledore announced the corridor was off limits to anyone who didn't want to die a particularly painful death. He also told her that he would be investigating it tonight while she slept.

Harry was looking forward to this class, as it had been Tom's favourite. He told her of the hexes, jinxes, and curses learned in the class, as well as ways to defend oneself. Of course, he disliked the name of the class for obvious reasons, and studied many of the so called dark curses they learned to protect themselves against, but overall it was a stimulating class with lots of practical work and Tom promised to teach her many of the "dark" curses that wouldn't be taught in the class.

She was disappointed to learn that the teacher planned on spending the whole class lecturing, and on top of that he had a stutter so bad you could barely understand him. Tom was appalled at the state of his favourite class and wondered how on earth such a pitiful teacher was hired. To make matters worse, Harry developed a searing headache as class progressed, though not long after they were dismissed it disappeared.

"Preposterous! I can't believe Dumbledore hired such an incompetent teacher." Draco Malfoy fumed.

"Malfoy, you were the one who said Dumbledore was letting the school go to the dogs." Harry pointed out.

Malfoy blushed and picked up his pace so he was walking well ahead of them. Pansy glared at Harry, to her confusion.

Herbology was better than defence, at the very least. They did a bit of theory before Professor Sprout had them start on identifying various plants. The jade-eyed witch did alright, and overall she thought herbology would be one of her favourite classes. Garden work had always been one of her favourite chores.

Classes were soon over for the day and Harry felt a sense of relief; she had made it through her first day of magical school.

-x-

Harry knocked on the door to Professor Snape's office.

"Enter." The man intoned. Harry opened the door and let herself and Tom in, closing it behind her. Snape was sitting at his desk drinking a cup of tea and marking essays.

"What do you need, Miss Potter?" Snape seemed annoyed by her very presence. Tom was annoyed by him.

"I- I talked to Professor McGonagall earlier today," She began. "About my parents. She said you were childhood friends with my mum... I was wondering if you could tell me about her?"

Snape took a deep breath and for a brief second pain flashed across his face before he controlled his expression. "I suppose Petunia didn't tell you anything growing up?" Harry nodded. "I'm not surprised. She was always terribly jealous of Lily.

"Your mother and I met when we were nine. We both lived in the muggle community of Cokeworth. I saw her doing accidental magic and told her about the magical world. She was incredibly eager to learn about the magical world; though she was afraid being muggleborn meant she wasn't good enough.

"Lily and Petunia were once close, though Lily's magic and Petunia's lack thereof tore them apart. Upon realizing that she'd never be like Lily, Petunia decided her sister was a freak. Lily tried to repair their relationship, but ultimately failed." Snape paused and took a sip of tea. Harry was listening with rapt attention, and even Tom seemed curious about the history between Snape and Lily.

"When we went to Hogwarts we were separated into different houses. Despite the rivalry our houses were famous for we remained friends for several years. Lily was particularly talented with charms, it was her favourite class. She was often found standing up for others and stood up for herself when necessary. Because of this she was made prefect in our fifth year. She was a very forward thinking woman, a feminist even. However, Lily could be very petty and unforgiving, as well as stubborn.

"At the end of our fifth year our friendship fell apart. I insulted her in the heat of the moment while I was being bullied and she never forgave me for it, despite how much I tried to earn her forgiveness. She spent the rest of our Hogwarts years avoiding me." Snape's voice was cold by the end of his tale, as if he were bitter about something.

"Why do you seem to dislike me so much if you were friends with my mother, sir?" Harry asked boldly. "Is it because she never forgave you?"

"Are you sure you want to know? I shan't sugar coat anything for your delicate sensibilities."

"I understand, sir. Please, tell me."

"While I've always cared about your mother, your father and I did not get on at all." Snape answered. "He was a bully. Constantly pranking and harassing Slytherin students. Myself in particular. I spent at least three days a week in the hospital wing because of him and his friends. They seemed to find me a particularly amusing target. That's not to say I never fought back, but four on one was hardly fair."

"... My father was a bully?" Harry whispered.

"Yes. I won't go into details about what he did, but I shall tell you he targeted me "because I existed". I'm sure he had his... decent qualities, but I never experienced them." Snape went on to say.

"Did he ever stop?"

"No. He bullied me until we graduated, though once he started dating Lily he was more subtle about it."

Harry thanked the professor for telling her honestly about her parents and left.

-x-

Tom led her to a deserted classroom knowing she needed time to process things.

"Are you okay, dearest?" Tom asked as gently as he could muster.

"I don't know. I don't want to believe my dad was a bully." Harry admitted. "I hate bullies. But I don't want to hate my dad."

"There are many sides to a person, Harriet." Tom said softly. "Your father may have been a bully but he died for you. You don't have to forgive his actions. You just have to accept them. You know I've done horrible things, Harriet. You know I've murdered people without a second thought. If you can accept me despite that, you should be able to accept your father as well."

"You make a good point Tom, but it just seems so different with you. I don't know how to explain it." She confessed. "I know I would do a lot of things that other people see as wrong, too. But I would never bully someone."

"I understand, dearest." Tom assured her. "The issue is your sense of morality is skewed. You were bullied severely, so it seems wrong to you. But you've been desensitized to murder."

"I guess so. I mean, so long as the murder has a purpose, like revenge, or the death is necessary to go forward with your plans, I don't mind it. I don't think I could ever kill someone myself, though."

The corners of Tom's lips twitched into a small smile. "We'll see, my dear.

-x-

Harry and Tom talked for another hour before she reluctantly walked back to the common room. She decided against taking the Slytherin passages because she needed time to clear her head. After discussing her father Tom had taught her the reductor curse and the bombardment hex. She practised on stray items in the classroom until she could turn them into a fine dust with reducto and cause a large explosion with bombarda.

Once she reached the common room she gave the password and stepped through. As soon as she entered Pansy was upon her.

"Where were you? I was so worried when you missed supper." Pansy fretted.

"I spoke to some of the professors about my parents and needed time to clear my head." Harry explained. "I didn't mean to make you worry."

"Well, don't skip supper next time. It's important to keep up your energy when using magic." Pansy lectured.

"I know, I know. Tom's told me the same thing a thousand times." She fabricated. She decided it was time to mention Tom, as per his instructions. Pansy looked confused.

"Who's Tom?" she asked.

"My friend. He introduced me to magic when I was nine. We met in London." Harry technically wasn't lying.

"Oh? How old is he?"

"Seventeen on Halloween." Tom supplied for her. She repeated this information to Pansy.

"And why haven't you introduced me to him?" Pansy demanded. "I haven't even seen you with any upperclassmen, now that I think of it."

"Tom is home schooled."

"Oh, why?"

"Well... he has some unfortunate relations and his father was worried about how he'd be treated because of them." She invented and eyed Tom who nodded in approval.

"Oh? Who?" Pansy wondered.

"The dark lord." she said this as if she didn't just drop a proverbial bomb. Pansy choked and looked at her like she was crazy.

"And you're friends with him!?" she exclaimed.

"Yes. He doesn't agree with his grandfather about a lot of things. Oh, he hates muggles, but he tolerates muggleborns perfectly fine. He doesn't like his grandfather's methods, either. He agrees that not all the so-called "dark arts" are bad and should be banned, only the violent stuff that has no other use. He believes intent matters more than the spell. He thinks we should separate ourselves from muggles completely and muggleborns should be forced to adapt to our culture, not the other way around." Harry told her. "I agree with him on most accounts."

"Really? You're dark?" Pansy queried.

"Mmm. No. Because there's no such thing. Dark is just a classification the ministry came up with to make us believe certain magics are bad. So no, I'm not dark or light. I'm a witch who's not too weak to seek power."

Tom stared on approvingly.

-x-

Harry tossed and turned into her sleep, occasionally letting out small sounds. Tom had left to explore the third floor corridor and wasn't there to wake her immediately as he normally would have. Instead he returned to find her twisted in her sheets and drenched in a cold sweat. He ran his hand up and down her arm and called to her in an attempt to wake her up.

It worked. Harry shot up with a gasp. She looked around wildly before her eyes settled on Tom and she burst into tears.

"Shhh." Tom soothed. "It was a dream. You're alright."

Harry mutely shook her head and proceeded to tell Tom about her dream. She told him how she had dreamed of the night her parents died. How her point of view seemed to keep switching from her baby-self and Voldemort. She told him how Voldemort-her killed her unarmed father while her mother ran. She shared how her mother begged for her life as Voldemort told her to stand aside. She told him of firing the killing curse at herself and intense pain as it rebounded and Voldemort-her was torn apart.

"I wonder..." Tom murmured.

"What?" Harriet asked him.

"Nothing, dearest. Don't worry about it." Tom brushed off her question. "How about I tell you what I discovered to take your mind off things?" Harry nodded.

"You'll need some background first, my dear. A long time ago alchemy was thriving. A man named Nicholas Flamel achieved two of the three major goals of alchemy. He created a philosopher's stone. With it, he managed to turn anything to gold and create the elixir of life, a potion that grants eternal youth." Tom told her. "And it just so happens Flamel is on good terms with our illustrious headmaster. So good in fact, he gave the stone to him, which Dumbledore hid in this very school."

"Why would he do that?" Harry wondered.

"No idea. The best part is that your defence teacher is after it." Tom said gleefully. "He wants it for my other self. I doubt he'll obtain it, Dumbledore has gotten several teachers and staff to help hide it. As much as I loathe the man, he is a formidable wizard."

"So what will we do?" she asked.

"Nothing. I won't have access to the school and I doubt you'll have the skills to get past all the protections." Tom admitted to her.

Harriet was a bit disgruntled at his doubt in her abilities. It was then that she decided she'd steal the philosopher's stone and give it to Tom.

-x-

The next morning Tom let Harry sleep in a bit because of their late night discussion. He woke her at quarter to seven so she could still beat the other girls to the shared bathroom.

Harry moaned about wanting more sleep, but when Tom threatened to lay on her again she got up and ran to the bathroom with her toiletries and clothes in seconds. She took a quick shower and brushed her teach and hair before dressing and leaving the bathroom. She looked at her schedule and grabbed her books for history, charms, defence and transfiguration.

She made use of Slytherins passages to get to the great hall to eat breakfast. She grabbed some toast and spread some baked beans on it. Half way through her breakfast owls flew into the hall, startling her.

"It's just the post, Harriet." Tom assured her. She continued to eat in peace until Marcus Flint tapped her on the shoulder.

"Thought you might want to read this, Potter." He said while holding out a newspaper. "You made the front page."

Harry took it and read the headline, "The Boy-Who-Lived, A Lie!" The article went on to discuss how Harry Potter was in fact _Harriet _Potter and speculated that the public may have been misled on other accounts too, such as her survival of the killing curse.

"It's mostly rubbish of course," Flint assured her. "Skeeter just tries to stir up trouble. See the headline? Entirely misleading."

"I don't really care. I wasn't the one who declared I survived the killing curse, defeated a dark lord and should be famous for it." Harry shrugged. "It's irrelevant. Probably something my mum did, anyways."

Flint shrugged and went on his way. Harry picked up her bag and left for history. She wasn't in the mood to wait for Pansy.

When she arrived she saw a ghost sitting at the desk at the front of the room. Realizing this must be the professor she grew excited. A ghost must have been around for a lot more history than the average person. Perhaps they had an inside perspective on it.

"I wouldn't get to excited, my dear." Harry looked at Tom questioningly. "He's a horrible teacher as you'll soon see. You're better off reading your textbook to get an idea of what's going on in class."

Her head drooped, but she resolved to see for herself before she made judgements. Tom always preferred practical work and the fact that this was a class without any might have fuelled his opinion of the professor being subpar.

While she waited for the other students to arrive she doodled on a spare bit of parchment. Soon Pansy arrived and interrupted her.

"Why didn't you wait for me?" she demanded.

"I guess I didn't think to. I'm not used to waiting for people to do things." Harry half-lied.

"Well, I'll forgive you this time." Pansy's eyes turned to a glare as she warned Harry. "But next time it won't be so easy!"

"Alright. I get it."

Class begun shortly after their exchange and Harry hated to admit it but Tom was right. The professor was horrible. He droned on and on about useless events and nothing of any real value. Who cared about Emeric the evil? What about the formation of the Wizengamot? The history of the statute of secrecy? She knew her textbook didn't have the answers, she'd have to find another one if she wanted to learn useful history.

Charms though was much more interesting. They learned the theory behind wand movements and how they were usually drawing a runic symbol. Harry thoroughly enjoyed it even though she'd covered a lot of it the previous year in her textbook.

After Charms was lunch. Harry let Pansy know she'd join her in a second and made her way to the Gryffindor table. She searched it up and down until she saw Hermione sitting at the end closest to the head table. She quickly made her way over to Hermione and sat down beside her.

"Hello there." She greeted. "How's Gryffindor treating you?"

"Are you allowed to sit here?" Hermione asked.

"Uh... I don't think there's a rule against it. Besides. I'm just here to ask if you want to meet up in the library after class."

"Oh, well. That sounds fun. Is your friend Pansy coming?" she asked nervously.

"Nah. Don't worry about her though. She's not used to muggleborns. She has a bit of ingrained prejudice against them. She's nice enough aside from that though. I figure between the two of us we can root that out a bit." Harry said to Hermione's relief.

"Alright. Before or after dinner?"

"How about before? And if we want we can decide to meet up again after." Harry offered.

"Sounds good."

"Alright, I'll see you after fourth period."

-x-

Lunch passed by quickly and soon Harry was on her way to defence. She figured there was no point in paying attention if they'd only be discussing theory. She'd learned everything she'd need from the defence textbooks she owned. She decided that in the future she'd use the class as a work period.

Once she arrived she decided to take the third seat in the middle row so Quirrell wouldn't notice her not paying attention. Most people assumed they should sit in the back to avoid attention, but the seat she chose was actually better. The professor would likely stand in front of the middle row and she would be hidden behind the people in front of her.

Harry succeeded in avoiding the professor's attention, but the entire class she developed a pounding headache that kept worsening until she left the class and it disappeared completely. It was so bad she almost missed hearing the homework assignment at the end. The entire period Tom glared at Quirrell.

Next period she had transfiguration and they did more theory before the professor had them once again attempt to turn matches to needles. Since Harry had already succeeded at the task, McGonagall gave her the homework assignment early instead.

Finally, class was out for the day and Harry made her way to the library after informing Pansy she was meeting with Hermione. Pansy sneered, but didn't put up a fuss, saying she'd do her homework while Harry was busy.

Tom silently led Harry to the library where she found Hermione sitting at a table in a back corner with books spread out all over half of it.

"Oh, Harry," she seemed surprised to see her. "I wasn't sure you'd come."

"Why not?"

"Well..." Hermione began. "I never really had a friend before and it seems a bit too good to be true that you'd want to be mine."

"Well, I'll admit I do have some ulterior motives, but I do think you're a pleasant person and can imagine forming a strong friendship with you." Harry told her honestly.

"What kind of motive?" Hermione asked warily.

"Well, I did a blood test at Gringotts—it costs about five galleons. My mother was a muggleborn witch you see, so I didn't expect anything to turn up on her side of the family, but I found she was descended from magical families!" Harry explained enthusiastically. "So I wondered if it was similar for other muggleborns and decided to befriend one and convince them to do the test too."

"So I'm a science experiment?" Hermione raised her eyebrows.

"Er. Yes?"

"Well, I suppose that's an admirable motive. I'll have to convince my parents to pay for the test. For science, of course." Hermione grinned.

Harry pulled out her homework and started working on it alongside her friend. Since she was ahead in the theory part of all her classes she finished before Hermione and pulled out her maths book to do some work on that.

"Is that a muggle textbook?" Hermione asked curiously.

"Yep. My friend Tom told me a lot of magical theory has to do with physics and chemistry, which is a lot of math, so I'm studying up on it. Plus it'll be useful for arithmancy in third year."

"Really? Perhaps I'll study it too." Hermione decided.

"Sure. I can make you a copy of my book since there's no copyright charms on it." Harry offered.

"Thanks, I'd appreciate that."

All too soon their stomachs grumbled signifying it was time to go to the Great Hall. Harryt ate a quick dinner and went off on a tour of the castle with Tom.

He took her all over the castle, showing her several locations of Slytherin's passages as well as the Room of Requirement and the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets. After his tour he took her to an empty classroom and her practice the gemino curse so she could duplicate her maths book for Hermione. It took her several tries but eventually she managed to perfect it with the help of Tom. He then proceeded to lecture her about the three unforgiveable curses and instructed her to practice them on mice in the Chamber of Secrets when convenient.

Harry was exhausted from all the spell practice she did and slid down Slytherin's passage to the common room. Something she noticed was that it didn't matter where she was in the school, she always started at the top of the passage and exited at the bottom. She said as much to Tom and he informed her that was because it was essentially a portal, not a regular hidden passage.

Harry ran to the bathroom to shower and change into her pyjamas. Once in bed she let Tom possess her and cast the silencing ward. When he was done she sat on her bed with her legs crossed hugging a pillow and asked him how he planned to establish his identity.

"You mean how will I get the paperwork? The goblins should be willing to forge it and file it in the ministry for the right price. I'll likely have to steal the money somehow, so it may take awhile until I can make an official appearance." He answered.

"Why would you need to steal it? The money in my vault should cover it, right?" Harry asked.

"Well, yes, but I didn't want to assume you'd lend me the money, dearest."

"Not lend. My money is your money, you hear me?" Harry said firmly.

"If you insist." He agreed.

-x-

Wednesday passed in a blur. In potions they brewed the boil cure potion and in charms they covered more theory. History was a bore and Harry used it to do her potions essay. Finally, it was time for the much anticipated flying class. Harry hadn't expected to have it so soon, but when she saw the notice in the common room she was elated. Flying! On brooms! She'd been waiting forever to try it. She doubted it would be as nice as flying without a broom, but she wouldn't get a chance to do that for quite some time.

Tom watched as she stood next to a broom with Hermione and Pansy on either side of her. Madam Hooch stood in front of them and was lecturing them about basic broom safety. Finally, she gave the word to summon their brooms.

"Up!" Harry commanded. The broom immediately flew into her hand. She grinned and turned to look at Hermione who was having much more trouble than her. Observing Pansy next, she saw the two definitely had something in common.

"Alright!" Madam Hooch called after most of the children had successfully summoned their brooms. "Mount your brooms. On the count of three we'll kick off. One, two, thr—"

She didn't get a chance to finish as Neville Longbottom pushed off too early. He flew into the air and lost control of his broom, eventually falling off. Madam Hooch tsk'd and took him to the hospital wing seeing as he had broken his arm.

Draco Malfoy spotted a round object on the ground. Picking it up he laughed and announced that Neville must have dropped it.

"How about I throw it in the forbidden forest so he really loses it?" Malfoy jeered.

"Give it back Malfoy." Harry demanded.

"Make me, Potter." Draco climbed on his broom and pushed off. Harry immediately climbed on her own and followed him despite Tom and Hermione's protests.

"Give it here." She held out her arm.

"No thanks." Malfoy then through it across the field. Harry sped after it and managed to catch it and pull out of a dive just in time to avoid hitting the ground.

"That was wicked!" Weasley whispered, reluctantly impressed.

"Harry! I can't believe you did that! You could get in so much trouble!" Hermione chastised.

"Yeah well, Neville's an alright bloke. He didn't deserve to have anything happen to his rememberall." Harry defended her actions before she froze. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted Professor Snape making his way toward her.

"Shite." She swore under her breath.

"Miss Potter, come with me." Snape ordered.

"Y-Yes, sir. How much trouble am I in?"

"Just wait, Potter." That couldn't be a good thing, could it?

Professor Snape led her to the Herbology greenhouses.

"Professor Sprout, may I borrow Flint please?"

Flint? Harry wondered. What was he needed for?

"Yes Professor Snape?" Flint asked once he arrived.

"I have found you a seeker. Higgs desired to work on his studies this year, did he not?"

"Yes. You're suggesting Potter take the position?"

"Indeed." Snape told him. "I saw her catch a rememberall after quite the impressive flight. As loathe as I am to admit it, flying is in her blood."

"Well, she can come to practice and we'll put her through the hoops, but if she isn't up to snuff we're not taking her, fame or not." Flint cautioned.

"I wouldn't expect anything else, Flint." Snape agreed.

"So I'm not in trouble?" Harry piped up hopefully.

"Oh no. You still have detention with me, Potter. That was quite the reckless stunt." He smirked. "Don't worry, Mr. Malfoy will be joining you."

The only thing stopping her from cursing was the fact that it would likely get her in even more trouble with the potions professor.

-o-

AN: Okay~ looong chapter. About 6K guys. That's long for me. I drew up a schedule for the first year Slytherins, if you're curious let me know and I'll share it. Today I also outlined up to chapter 17, which is the beginning of third year. I have a few things planned for second year, but it's still not going to be too long. Next chapter is Halloween. Who can guess what happens? If you guess correctly I'll... uh. Dedicate the chapter to you?

Edited October 17 2015


	8. This is Halloween

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 8: This is Halloween

Dedicated to Theta-McBride

-o-

The next few weeks passed quickly. Harry did indeed make the Slytherin Quidditch team and was permitted to order a broom. She chose a Cleansweep 7 in remembrance of her first trip to Diagon Alley. Because she was the only girl on the team and younger than all of the other players they became rather protective of her, almost like an army of big brothers.

At least once a week she forced Pansy and Hermione together and while Pansy was still a bit standoffish, both girls were polite to each other in Harry's presence. Her detention with Snape lasted two weeks. Her and Malfoy cleaned cauldrons without the use of magic.

Harry studied ahead in most of her classes since she knew the theory already. So far she was a quarter ways through second year charms and transfiguration. Hermione was quickly catching up to her. The girl was a studying machine. Harry figured it helped that Hermione genuinely liked learning, unlike Harry who studied because she wanted to be powerful and of use to Tom.

Soon enough it was already Halloween. Harry had been anticipating this day for over a year. Today was the day Tom would get a body.

She went through defence on autopilot. Her thoughts were consumed with the ritual she would be performing after class. She was beyond worried that she would mess up and somehow destroy Tom despite his assurances that such a thing would not happen.

In charms class they finally started the practical work. The first charm they were learning was the levitation charm. Harry had already practised the charm with Tom and mastered it weeks ago, so she spent the class helping Pansy, Tracy, Sophie, and Blaise with the spell. She earned ten points for Slytherin for her efforts.

Her afternoon was taken up by double transfiguration. The first period was taken up by lecture and notes and the second period involved a more complex inanimate to inanimate transfiguration than they had done before. Harry got it half way through the class and was pleased with her progress.

She was the first student out of the classroom that afternoon and didn't even stop to tell Pansy that she'd be busy that evening. She made her way to the second floor girls bathroom and made sure Myrtle was absent before she opened the passage to the Chamber of Secrets.

She slipped down the slide and landed at the bottom in a heap.

"I swear," she complained to Tom. "Slytherin must never have heard of the wondrous invention known as stairs."

Tom merely rolled his eyes. He directed her though the chamber to a passage that took her out into the middle of the Forbidden Forest. Once they had made it to the forest Tom possessed her and went about hunting a dear. He found a large stag and quickly cast a cutting charm at its throat. He levitated the mammal all the ways back to the main chamber and put it down to the side before exiting Harry's body.

She then began to work on drawing out the ritual circle in chalk. Once finished, she took out a goblet from her bag that she had stolen from the great hall and placed it at the northern point. She cut herself and let her blood flow into the goblet. Next she levitated the stag to the southern point. Finally she placed the diary at the west point and stood at the east point. She took out her wand and began drawing out complex runes while chanting the incantation Tom had made her practice until she could recite it flawlessly, even when he woke her up in the middle of the night just to test her on it.

The circle began to glow. Subtle at first, but eventually the light engulfed Harry. When it died down, the deer was gone, the goblet empty, and Tom stood before her in a body of his own. He was even more handsome than Harry had thought before.

"Well done, Harriet." He told her. Harry then proceeded to launch herself at him, her arms snaking around his neck. She laughed as he fell over with her landing on top of him. Realizing what she'd just done, she hurriedly stood while her face imitated a tomato.

"Here." She pulled her vault key out of her pockets and handed it to him. He took it with a nod. Borrowing her wand, he changed his hair from black to dark blond and his eyes from green to pale blue.

"You look good." Harry blurted. "Not as good as your natural looks, of course. But still good."

Tom laughed. Once his laughter died down he leaned over and kissed her on her lightning bolt scar.

"Thank you." And with that, he exited the chamber to the Forbidden Forest.

-x-

Harry decided to take the long way back to the common room from the chamber. She was tired, but needed time to think. This was the first time she had been without Tom in over a year and she felt almost naked, or like a part of her was missing. She had not realized how much she'd come to rely on Tom for company.

She turned around a corner and stopped in her tracks. There stood a troll. It was huge and headed right for her, club in hand. It seemed to see her just as she started to back away. She grabbed her wand and started firing off the most powerful curses she knew, but nothing seemed to penetrate its thick skin. Her spells just seemed to annoy it.

She dodged a swing of its club. At that moment she decided to switch tactics and began to run as fast as she could. The troll ran after her, its big frame giving it an advantage.

When it was only six feet away Harry remembered something Tom had told her a long time ago and it gave her an idea.

"Wingardium Leviosa!" The club flew out of the troll's hand and dropped on its head. Unfortunately this merely stunned the creature for a few precious seconds that Harry used to put more distance between them.

Panicking, Harry closed her eyes and began to focus on just wanting the troll gone. She could hear it getting closer until she felt the spray of warm gooey liquid. Blood. She opened her eyes to see blood and brains everywhere. The troll's head had exploded.

The next thing Harry knew, blackness engulfed her. She fainted.

-x-

When she woke up she saw white. She was in the hospital wing. She sat up and looked around, looking for someone to explain how she had arrived there.

Madam Pomfrey bustled out of her office and began to cast diagnostic charms on her before declaring her fit as a fiddle.

"What happened?" The jade-eyed witch asked. "How did I get here?"

"Professor Snape found you passed out near the dead troll." Madam Pomfrey explained. "I don't know what you were doing on your own when you'd been ordered to go directly to your common room while the adults dealt with the troll."

"What? When were we ordered to our common rooms?" Harry was confused. Did she miss the order in her excitement to leave class and help Tom?

"At the feast of course, don't you remember?" Madam Pomfrey pulled out her wand again to check her head. "Perhaps you hit your head when you passed out..."

"No, no! I'm fine! I just wasn't at the feast." she explained.

"And why not, Miss Potter?" Snape interjected as he walked into the infirmary.

"Well," she started, trying to think of a good lie. "I didn't exactly feel like celebrating the anniversary of my parents' deaths, you know?"

Professor Snape nodded and Madam Pomfrey began to send her pitying looks.

"So I went to an abandoned classroom to mourn in peace. When I was heading back to the common room, I came across the troll." She explained.

"And what happened with the troll?" Snape prompted.

"Well... I shot off every hex and curse I knew, but at most they just annoyed it. I, ah, thought that since magic wasn't working, blunt force might. So I levitated its club and dropped it on its head, but that only stunned it. When I was little I learned that if I wanted something badly enough my magic would react. So I focused on wanting the troll gone and then its head exploded."

"That was a very powerful bout of accidental magic, Miss Potter. It's no wonder you passed out. You must have been exhausted." Madam Pomfrey said.

"I-I guess." Harry privately thought she would have been fine had she not helped Tom with the ritual right before that. It used up most of her magic.

"Well, while I'm glad to see you awake, I'm going to keep you here for the rest of the day in case of any lingering magical exhaustion." Madam Pomfrey decided.

Harry groaned.

-x-

Her stay in the hospital wing wasn't too bad. Pansy came to visit at lunch and informed her that according to rumours, she'd run off to take down the full grown mountain troll on her own and did so using dark arts. Students were unsure how much of that was true and Harry was quick to fill Pansy in on the real story. After hearing the story Pansy set off to set the gossip straight while Harry grinned fondly.

Hermione visited after dinner. She had long ago memorized Harry's schedule and knew which classes Harry had that day, so she had gone to all her professors and grabbed her incapacitated friend's homework. Harry was relieved to see that most of her essays would require no research and started in on them after Hermione had been kicked out.

She had a restful sleep in the infirmary that night. It was the weekend so Madam Pomfrey tried to let her sleep in, but Harry's internal clock woke her at six in the morning regardless. After doing one more check to make sure Harry was healthy Madam Pomfrey released her.

She slid down Slytherin's passage to the common room and made her way to her dorm. She grabbed her favourite lilac dress, undergarments, socks and toiletries and headed to the bathroom. She took a hot shower and scrubbed viciously to get the feeling of the troll's blood and brains off of her. She knew that she'd already been bathed, but until she did it herself she wouldn't feel clean. Stepping out of the steamy bathroom she checked on Pansy to see if she was awake. Finding her still asleep she decided to wait for her in the common room. She grabbed the rest of her homework to work on while she waited.

Once she finished her homework she grew impatient. It was already eight 'o'clock and Pansy still wasn't up. Usually the girl got up by seven every day, even the weekends. She decided to forsake her friend and go get breakfast by herself after a few minutes of contemplation. Pansy would understand her need for sustenance. She hoped.

She took the long way to the Great Hall to kill time. When she arrived she grabbed some toast and marmalade. In the middle of her breakfast a beautiful snowy owl flew towards her with a small wrapped package. It dropped the package in front of her and perched on her shoulder.

She carefully peeled off the wrapping and found a leather bound lilac diary inside. She turned it over and saw her full name was embossed in gold lettering on the back. She opened it up and found a letter inside.

_Dearest,_

_Thank you for your help. I have acquired an apartment in Actu Alley last night and will move in tomorrow._

_The diary is charmed so that whatever is written in it will appear in my own matching diary and vice versa. I thought it would be an easier way to communicate, rather than relying on owls._

_Speaking of owls, I acquired this beauty at Eeylops Owl Emporium. I have yet to name her and thought that perhaps you should do the honours._

_I have yet to look for employment. I still need to write my OWLs and NEWTs since my father did not permit __me __to when I lived with him. Now that I am of age I can finally separate myself from him and live my own life out of his over protective bubble. He felt our relation meant we had to hide. I feel differently. I will be writing my OWLs on Tuesday and Wednesday and my NEWTS the following week._

_All the best,_

_Tom_

Harry shoved the letter in her pocket and grabbed the diary off the table. She took Slytherin's passage to the common room and ran up to her room. She grabbed a quill and ink and began writing.

_Thank you so much Tom, this is perfect! _ She wrote. _Just like when I first met you._

_I thought you might like it. _Harry could practically see the smirk on his face. _The only difference is I may not always be able to reply right away. _

_That's okay. I understand. The same goes for me, too, I suppose._

_Indeed. I should mention that your name will turn silver when I have left a new message and that only you will be able to read the diary. _Tom informed her._ When you fill this diary up let me know and I'll send you a new one._

_Alright. I'd wish you luck on your OWLs and NEWTs but I know you'll ace them._

_I'm glad you have confidence in me. _

_Oh, I came up with a name for your owl. Hedwig. I thought it was a pretty name when I came across it in my history book._

"Harry, what are you doing?" Pansy called from her bed next to her.

_Got to go, Tom. I'll write later. I miss you. _Harry wrote before closing the diary.

"Just writing to Tom. He sent me this really nice diary connected to one for himself so we can talk without the inconvenience of owls."

"Oh, that's sweet." Pansy cooed. "I wish Draco would do something like that for me."

"Pansy, Draco is actually at Hogwarts. You can talk to him any time."

"Oh, I know. It's just that we used to be so close, but since we came to Hogwarts he's been avoiding me. I don't know what I did wrong." Pansy admitted.

"Maybe he just thinks he's too cool to hang out with girls?" Harry suggested. "Or maybe he doesn't approve of your friendship with me? I am a half-blood after all.

"Maybe." Pansy muttered half heartedly.

"Pansy..." The jade-eyed witch began. "Do you like Draco? Like, like-like, Draco?"

"No!" Pansy denied with a flushed face. "Of course not. Don't be silly."

"Oh wow!" Harry laughed. "You totally do! You're such a bad liar."

"Shut up, Harry! We both know you like Tom!" Pansy accused.

"Wh-what? No I don't!" Harry denied with a blush. "Don't be silly. He's way older than me!"

"Love knows no age." Pansy sing-songed.

"Shut up, Pansy. You don't know anything." Harry grumbled.

"Obviously I know more than you."

-x-

Sunday was spent talking to Tom. He had moved into his apartment on Actu Alley and asked her opinions on furnishings. Harry told him she didn't really care either and just to go with whatever was decent quality but not too expensive. She wanted to make the money in her vault stretch as far as possible, even though she had quite a large sum.

Monday came and it would be the first day Harry left the safety of her common room after the troll incident. First thing in the morning was potions with the Gryffindors who had been the largest propagators of the "Harry Potter used dark magic to kill the troll" story. She was not looking forward to that. She was, however, looking forward to seeing Hermione.

Potions class was interesting enough. Professor Snape singled her out as was becoming usual, but it was no longer a bad thing. He only asked questions he knew she could answer and would generously reward her with house points. Afterwards they took notes on the forgetfulness potion that they would be brewing Wednesday.

When class ended she and Hermione were just outside the dungeons when they were ambushed by Daphne Greengrass.

"Had to go after the troll on your own, eh Potter?" she taunted. "Killing the dark lord not enough glory for you?"

"If you _must _know, Harry didn't even know about the troll until she encountered it." Hermione defended. "She wasn't even at the feast."

"No one asked you, you filthy little mudblood." Daphne spat.

"Hey! Shut up, Daphne! Don't you dare call her that." Pansy called as she approached.

"Blood traitor!" Daphne spat at her. "Consorting with mudbloods, what would your parents say?"

"I am not!" Pansy shrieked. "You take that back! I just don't want someone to hear and take points from Slytherin!"

"Just leave us alone, Greengrass. Unless you want to end up like the troll, of course. It could be arranged." Harry threatened.

Daphne sneered but turned and left. She had looked a bit frightened while doing so.

The rest of the day people stared at her and whispered, occasionally pointing. She was relieved to retreat to a back corner of the library with Hermione where they usually met to do homework and study ahead. They had invited Pansy to join them at the beginning but the girl told them that she wasn't interested in getting ahead and was content as long as she passed her classes. Hermione looked horrified at the idea of not doing her best, but didn't say anything. Studying became a special bonding time for the two girls.

"I'm surprised Pansy defended me," Hermione confided after they had spread out their books. "I really wasn't expecting that."

"Neither was I. But I told you Pansy was an alright sort. She's obviously starting to get over her prejudice a bit." Harry told her.

"I know she said it was just because she didn't want to lose house points, but still... no teachers or prefects were around." The brunette speculated.

"I know. She was just trying to keep up her image. She's very concerned with how she's seen, and she's been taught a blood traitor is the worst thing you could be." Harry said. "She's quite shallow in some ways, but still fun to be around."

-x-

Things didn't die down as quickly as Harry hoped they would. Nothing exciting happened since the troll incident so the students had nothing new to gossip about.

Harry was at her wits end. She didn't know why it was such a big deal, but she was getting tired of it all. She got so frustrated she went down to the Chamber of Secrets to practice the unforgivable curses on rats and mice to relieve stress.

She succeeded at the imperius curse after two weeks of practice, but she was having a lot of trouble with the cruciatus curse, which she chose to work on next.

She asked Tom about it and he told her it was likely that she didn't want to hurt the creature enough for the curse to work. He said she probably wouldn't be able to use it unless she was seeking revenge or very angry at someone. He also suggested pretending the rats were someone she didn't like and see if that helped, but it didn't. Eventually Tom just told her to forget about it for the moment and come back to it when she was feeling angry.

-o-

AN: Short chapter, I know, but uh. Yeah. Sorry. Next one should be longer... Also chapter 1 has been replaced with the beta'd version. Sorry I didn't update yesterday, I wrote most of this then but I was drained from a counselling session and couldn't finish.

Thanks for almost 100 reviews. When I reach 100 I plan to write a companion one-shot. Also thanks for over 300 follows. You guys all rock.

Best,

~KCE

Edited October 18 2015


	9. A Very Harry Yule

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 9: A Very Harry Yule

-o-

November turned to December and finally the troll incident was forgotten with the excitement of the upcoming Slytherin versus Gryffindor quidditch match. So far no one knew Harry had replaced the Higgs as the Slytherin seeker, and they were hoping to keep it that way until the match.

The weeks before the match were tense. Slytherin was practising more than ever before and Harry barely had time to spend with Hermione and Pansy.

All too soon the day of the quidditch game arrived. Harry was the only girl on the Slytherin quidditch team so she was stuck getting ready by herself. It wouldn't matter to her except she was incredibly nervous and there was no one around to reassure her now that Tom had a body. She took a deep breath and looked at herself in the mirror. Her small frame was adorned in green and silver quidditch robes. Her hair was pulled back in a high pony tail so it would stay out of her face and her round glasses were perched on her nose.

"You can do it, Harry." She told herself. She marched out of the girls' change room with her broom in hand. Outside the rest of the team was waiting for her.

"Alright there, Potter?" The captain asked.

"You bet, Flint." She tried to sound more confident than she was.

"Remember, focus on the snitch. But try to run interference for Gryffindor's chasers, too."

"I know."

"Good. Chasers!" Flint barked and turned towards two of the older boys. "Their keeper is good, loathe as I am to admit it, so I'll have the beaters try to distract him. You focus on keeping the quaffle away from the other chasers. Don't be afraid to play dirty. We clear?"

"Clear!" the chasers and beaters replied.

"Bletchley! I want your best, you hear me? Screw up as bad as last time and you're off the team!"

"Got it, captain." Bletchley replied with a grimace.

The team proceeded to the quidditch pitch where they were met with their Gryffindor counterparts. Flint glared at the captain, Oliver Wood, who glared back in turn. They shook hands at Hooch's prompting and it looked like they were having a competition to see who could break whose hand first. They only let go when Hooch coughed politely.

"Alright now, I want a nice fair game, you lot." Hooch declared. "Mount your brooms. Kick off at the whistle."

Harry clambered on to her Cleansweep 7. At the shrill sound of Hooch's whistle she took off.

"What's this? Slytherin's got a first year on their team!" The commentator, Lee Jordan exclaimed. "Is that even allowed? And they let a girl on too. That's a first..."

"Yes, Jordan, it's allowed. Focus on the match." McGonagall reprimanded.

"Sorry professor. And Slytherin has the quaffle. Chaser Flint passes to Pucey but is intercepted by Angelina Spinnet. Spinnet dodges a bludger, shoots and—misses! Damn—"

"Jordon!"

"Sorry professor. Won't happen again."

Harry blocked out the sound of Jordon's voice as she searched for the snitch. She was flying high above the pitch and the rest of the game. She scanned the sky for any trace of the snitch but had no luck. She noticed the Gryffindor seeker, a small second year boy with brown hair, was watching her rather than looking for the snitch himself. Harry grinned and decided to have some fun with him.

She took off and flew into the middle of the game. She weaved her way between the Gryffindor chasers and laughed when one crashed into their own seeker who was racing behind her. Flint took the opportunity to steal the quaffle from Bell who was stunned at her teammates' crash. Harry flew off and dodged a bludger one of the Weasley twins sent at her. She continued to distract the Gryffindor chasers until Slytherin was up thirty points. Once she felt satisfied they had a good lead she rose up into the air to circle the pitch for the snitch again.

Suddenly, her broom started to buck. She shrieked, locked her ankles and grasped the broom with both hands. Her broom flew around without her consent, continually trying to get her to fall off. By this time the other players realized something was dreadfully wrong. The Gryffindor beaters, not wanting to see a little girl die, abandoned their task to circle below Harry so they could catch her if she fell. The rest of the players stopped to stare at Harry in concern. Eventually, Flint motioned for the Slytherin team to start playing again, taking the opportunity to score as much as possible. While he didn't want anything to happen to his prized seeker, he knew that others would take care of her if she fell.

After what seemed like an eternity, Harry's broom calmed. She sighed in relief and shouted "thanks" to the Weasley twins who saluted her in response. She saw the score had drastically changed while she was clinging to her broom. The score was now one-ninety to fifty in Slytherin's favour. It wasn't hard to figure out that her team had taken advantage of the situation. She didn't blame them. She scanned the pitch and finally saw a flash of gold on the other side of the pitch. Upon realizing she'd seen the snitch, Gryffindor's seeker took off after her. The Weasley twins tried to cut her off from the snitch by shooting bludgers at her but she dodged them with ease. The Gryffindor seeker on the other hand, had a bit more trouble with them. She wasn't certain, but she was fairly certain she heard Oliver Wood shouting at his beaters. The fact that bludgers stopped coming her way gave credence to her thoughts.

As she drew closer to the snitch she reached out her hand. When she was maybe two metres from the elusive ball it shot straight down, forcing Harry into a steep dive. As the ground approached the little ball sped up in its descent. It was then that Harry had an idea. She was maybe ten metres from the ground. She jumped off her broom to free fall. She caught up with the snitch and grasped in her palm. She then focused on wanting to land safely. Seconds later she collided with the ground. She grunted in pain but rolled with the landing to lessen the damage. Her magic had successfully cushioned her fall, but it couldn't completely lessen the impact. She was sore and sure to be badly bruised, but nothing was broken.

The Slytherin section of the stands broke out into cheers and Harry's broom landed beside her. She grinned and held up the snitch.

"Potter, Potter, Potter!" The Slytherins chanted. Harry's team mates flew towards her and jumped off their brooms from a significantly lower height. They were met with applause. The older Slytherins grinned and patted her on the back. Flint even lifted her on to his shoulders to parade around.

He let her down just outside the change rooms and congratulated her once more before he scolded her for acting like a Gryffindor. She bowed her head through his lecture that ended with him forbidding her from ever jumping off her broom again, lest she give them all heart attacks.

-x-

At the beginning of December Tom invited Harry to spend the winter holidays with him. She readily agreed and asked if she could properly introduce him to her friends at the platform. He told her that would be fine and changed the topic to his new job.

He had been hired at a store in Knockturn Alley called Beatrice's Books. It was a small bookstore that sold rare and expensive books as well as some that held illegal content in the "member's only" section. The owner, Beatrice Bulstrode was surprised someone with his NEWT scores was applying in a place like Knockturn Alley and for a job as a lowly shop boy, but hired him on the spot. Tom explained to Harry he had chosen to work there because he was likely to run into rich purebloods with similar ideals that he could charm. The more he charmed the more backing he'd have when he launched his political campaign, he explained. He had already made several allies after only a week of work. He planned to share his political aspirations with customers after the winter holidays ended.

Harry had been sure to tell him of Quirrell jinxing her broom at the quidditch match and he had been furious. Harry was pretty sure that she knew why Quirrell wouldn't be coming back to teach again next year...

Their conversation was cut short by Pansy. She needed help choosing an outfit for spending time with Draco, who had finally acknowledged her. Harry gave her opinions on several different outfits, which Pansy ignored. In the end the girl went with the very first option which left Harry exasperated. Once Pansy was gone, she returned to writing to Tom.

-x-

Winter holidays were almost upon them when Harry realized she had yet to make any effort to steal the philosopher's stone. She knew from Tom that there were several obstacles, but she didn't know what they were. She knew she'd be taking her broom with her though just in case it proved to be useful. She figured her best bet was to wait until Quirrell went after it so he would have disabled most of the traps already. The problem however was that she could not physically watch the third floor corridor at all times. This led her to searching for a magical solution.

After many hours of research she found a basic ward that would be able to tell her if a specific person walked passed a certain point. It would alert her immediately, so the only problem would be making an excuse to get away from people and make it to the corridor before Quirrell left with the stone. She figured if he wasn't expecting it she should be able to disable him and get the stone. Hopefully she would be able to convince Tom to help her perfect the ward over the holidays so she could cast it when she came back. She just hoped Quirrell didn't make a move on the stone before then.

-x-

The morning they were to leave Hogwarts for the winter holidays found Harry leisurely reading while observing Pansy frantically pack out of the corner of her eye. Harry had done the smart think and packed the night before. She had thought about telling Pansy to do the same thing, but this was much more amusing.

Eventually Harry took pity on Pansy and helped her finish packing. They finished just in time to make it to the train without breakfast. Neither girl cared about missing the meal as it just meant more room for sweets on the train ride.

They were joined by Hermione not long after they boarded the train. At this point Pansy and Hermione were friendly when together with Harry, but completely ignored each other outside of her company. Still, the train ride home was enjoyable for all three girls, and Pansy even managed to get Hermione to pig out on the candy.

Once the train began to pull into the station Harry had her trunk in hand and flew down the train to the exit. She waited eagerly for the doors to open and hopped off as soon as they did. She scanned the platform for Tom and didn't see him. Her face fell, but then she remembered she was looking for someone with blond hair, not black hair and looked again. As soon as she saw him she was off. She threw herself into his arms and laughed.

"Tom!" she squealed. "It feels like it's been forever!"

Tom just gave her a half-smile and shook his head.

"You wanted to introduce me to your friend, correct?" he reminded her. She nodded and grabbed his hand to pull him over to the Parkinsons. While Harry missed his constant presence, she felt being able to touch him like this more than made up for it.

"Pansy, this is Tom!" she exclaimed as she bounced over.

Pansy turned to them with a grin. "It's nice to finally meet you, Tom. I've heard much about you."

"Good things, I hope." Tom smiled. Harry didn't like this smile of his, it was obviously fake, but Pansy didn't seem to notice.

"Of course. Oh! These are my parents, Edgar and Emma Parkinson." She introduced. "Mom, dad, Tom and Harry."

"A pleasure to meet you Miss Potter." Edgar said. "Pansy here tells me you took out a full grown mountain troll all by yourself!"

Harry froze. She had purposely neglected to tell Tom about that.

"Oh? Is that so?" Tom said dangerously. "Harriet here neglected to tell me about that."

Edgar Parkinson went stiff. The tone he Tom used all too familiar. He had heard it many times from the Dark Lord.

"Ehehehe... About that... It slipped my mind?" Harry giggled nervously. At Tom's glare she deflated. "Okay, maybe I just didn't want to worry you. It happened on Halloween. After... mourning my parents... I was walking back to the common room and came across the troll. In the end my _accidental _magic made its head explode. I passed out soon afterwards."

"You'll tell me every detail when we get home, Harriet." Tom ordered.

"Yessir." She saluted.

The Parkinsons laughed awkwardly.

"Well, see you after the holidays, Harry." Pansy said and started to pull her parents towards the apparation point. Harry and Tom waved goodbye.

"Come on, I still need to introduce you to Hermione. Be polite to her parents, please?"

"Fine." Harry grinned and grabbed his hand again. She searched the station for the Grangers and pulled Tom towards them when she saw them.

"Harry!" Hermione waved upon seeing her.

"Hermione! This is Tom!" Harry said while bouncing on her heels.

"A pleasure to meet you, Miss Granger. I assume these are your parents?" Tom said politely.

"Yes, Harry, Tom, these are my parents Oliver and Mai Granger. Mum, dad, this is Harry and her friend, Tom." The Grangers eyed Tom warily, but greeted him politely none the less.

"Well, Harry and I best be going." Tom announced. "It was nice to meet you all."

Harry let go of Tom's hand to hug Hermione and wished her a Happy Christmas.

She waved to the Grangers as Tom pulled her to the apparation point.

-x-

Harry loved Tom's flat. It had a combined living room and dining room, a small kitchen, a single bathroom and two bedrooms. The furniture was rather plain and the main areas were done in blues. Harry's room had lilac walls, fluffy white carpet and white furniture. She had yet to see Tom's room, but she imagined it was green and sliver to show pride in his heritage. For some reason he wouldn't let her see his room yet.

"I met with your... _relatives_... before I invited you, Harriet." Tom told her as they ate lunch.

"Oh?"

"Yes, I needed their permission to take you for the holidays. I assured them I was a fully trained wizard." Tom grinned nastily. "And that I would be sure that you came to no harm."

Harry cackled. "I bet they loved that."

"Indeed. I thought your uncle's head would explode if he got any redder. But alas, that was not so." Tom lamented.

"So what's the plan for Christmas? I don't see a tree or anything."

"Wizards and witches do not celebrate _Christmas_." Tom said the word as if it were revolting. "We celebrate Yule."

"Okay... So what's Yule?" Harry asked.

"Yule is the celebration of the Winter Solstice." Tom began to lecture. "It is when the dark half of the year relinquishes to the light half. It is a festival of the sun, the longest night of the year, the sun's "rebirth" so to speak.

"It is typically celebrated with decorated evergreen trees, the burning of a Yule log, wreaths, candles and bonfires."

"So... are we getting a tree then?" Harry prodded.

"Yes, we'll get a small tree."

"Wicked!" Harry grinned. "There are presents, too, right?"

"Yes, dearest, there are presents."

"I need to go shopping then." Harry declared.

-x-

The next day she bundled up and headed to Diagon Alley to shop for presents while Tom worked. She headed to Flourish and Blotts first to find a book for Hermione. She decided one on Wizarding holidays and celebrations would be appropriate. She also picked up a copy for herself. Pansy was a bit more difficult, but she finally decided on a luxurious dusty pink cloak with a gold clasp.

Tom on the other hand was a real chore. She scoured the shops for a hint of anything he might like, but she knew finding a book he hadn't read would be difficult and he wasn't one to enjoy clothes as a present. Finally while she searched The Junk Shop something caught her eye. It was a silver pocket watch that was charmed to show you the view from behind. It seemed like something Tom might find useful, so she picked it up and brought it to the front of the shop. She had the salesman gift wrap it for her so that she didn't have to hide it from Tom when she got home.

She next went to Sugarplum's Sweets Shop and bought some candy for her quidditch teammates. She grabbed some for the Weasley twins too as thanks for being ready to catch her during the Gryffindor vs Slytherin game. She also picked up some confections for herself.

She took her purchases back to Tom's flat and quickly wrapped them. She was excellent at it as the Dursleys had always made her wrap Dudley's mountain of presents and didn't settle for anything less than perfection. She tied Hermione's present to Hedwig's leg and sent her off. She knew Hedwig would return soon seeing as Hermione lived in London herself.

True enough just an hour later Hedwig returned with a package from Hermione. Harry removed the package and gave Hedwig an owl treat. After giving the owl a rest she attached the candies for the quidditch team and sent Hedwig off once more.

She spent the rest of the day doing her homework so she wouldn't have to worry about it at the last minute. When Tom arrived home he cooked them supper and he suggested she invite Hermione over for a New Year's Eve sleepover.

"But that's your birthday!" Harry protested.

"Not any more, dearest. My birthday is now October 31st." Tom reminded her.

"Oh. I guess. Well, I'll write Hermione when Hedwig gets back and see what she says." Harry acquiesced.

"Good." Tom nodded.

"Why do you want me to invite her over, any ways?" Harry asked curiously.

"I want you to find out how she's treated by her muggle parents and if it'll be possible to persuade her to separate herself from them. She could possibly be a good example for some of the laws I intend to push." He explained.

"Such as?"

"You'll just have to wait and see, Harriet."

-x-

Finally Yule was upon them. Harry woke to a tapping sound on her window. She saw that there were three owls outside and opened her window to let them in. She relieved them of their burdens and fetched them some water and owl treats. After eating and drinking the owls took off. Harry checked the tags to see one was from Pansy, the other from her quidditch teammates and the final one without a signature.

She grabbed her outfit for the day and ran to the bathroom. When she emerged she smelt eggs, sausage and hash browns. Tom had made breakfast. She padded over to the small table that held a Yule log as centrepiece as well as plates of food and filled her own plate while Tom read the newspaper.

"Happy Yule, dearest." He greeted. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yup!" Harry answered. "What about you?"

"Sleep is still a bit of a novelty. I enjoy it immensely." He replied. "It is the same with food."

"Yeah, I can imagine after fifty years of not sleeping or eating." Harry winced. That didn't sound very fun.

Harry quickly gobbled up her breakfast and ran to her room to grab the presents she'd just received that morning. She spread them out with the others under the evergreen tree.

"Can we do presents now, Tom?" She asked eagerly. Tom smirked and nodded. It was amusing to see her acting the way she was.

"Here, open yours first!" Harriet shoved her present to him in his face. He raised an eyebrow but opened it none the less.

"It's nice." He said while he examined the watch. He opened it and smirked when he realised what it did. "This could be useful, thank you."

Harry smiled brightly. She then grabbed the present from Hermione and tore it open. Inside was a book titled _Wards for Beginners_, and a note saying Hermione noticed her looking up wards in the weeks before the holidays and thought she might like an introductory text. It reminded Harry to ask Tom to help her master the proximity ward to which he readily agreed.

The next gift, which was from Pansy, was a beautiful silver necklace with an amethyst as the focus. Harry tried it on right away and it matched the pastel purple dress she was wearing perfectly.

She went through a few more gifts, including a huge sack of candy from her teammates, a rather fancy quill from Draco Malfoy and a day planner from Tracy Davis. There was only one present left, and Harry was feeling rather depressed because she was certain it was not from Tom, but she did her best to hide it. She opened the last present and pulled out a smooth, silvery cloak.

"Woah!" she said as she tried it on.

"An invisibility cloak. Those are rather rare." Tom commented. "Let me see the card."

"Your father left this in my possession before he died. It is time it was returned to you. Use it well." Tom read. "A Very Merry Christmas to you."

"It didn't say on the tag, either."

"It's from Dumbledore." Tom told her. "I recognise his writing."

"Oh. Well, why would dad give it to him?" Harry wondered.

"I don't know. It's curious that it belonged to your father... most invisibility cloaks wear out after just a few years. This one... must be special. We should do some research."

"Really? Wow... I guess we should." Harry responded. Seconds later she deflated. She had not received a present from Tom.

"Wait just a moment." He told her as he walked to his room. When he came out he was carrying something small in his arms. He set it down in front of Harry.

"A puppy!" she squealed as she picked it up. "What is er—" she held it up higher to check whether it was female or male "—her name? What kind is she?"

"She's a Papillion. As for her name, that's for you to decide." Tom responded. Harry stared at the little thing. She was black and white with rather large ears. Her head vaguely reminded Harry of an apple.

"Hank." Harry decided. "Her name is Hank."

"Hank? You know she's a girl, right?" Tom raised his eyebrows.

"Yeah, so?"

"Well, then why name her Hank?"

"Because it suits her." Harry said as if it were obvious. Tom just shook his head. Hank it was.

-x-

A little over a week later Harry and Tom left the warmth of their flat to meet Hermione and her parents at the Leaky Cauldron. According to Hermione it had taken a lot of begging for her parents to allow her to come to visit Harry, but they finally gave in on the condition they could see where she would be visiting.

The walk to the Leaky Cauldron was short but cold. Harry was relieved to enter the warmth of the building. She spotted Hermione and her parents right away and pulled Tom over to them. Hermione greeted the twosome warmly while her parents greeted them politely, but distantly. Tom led them back to his flat and showed them Harry's room where Hermione would be staying. Hermione's parents then proceeded to ask a whole host of questions to their daughter's mortification. Tom just answered them politely, but Harry could see his patience with the muggles was wearing thin. Finally, the interrogation finished and the Grangers reluctantly let Hermione stay for the night. As soon as they were out the door Tom told the girls to behave and retreated to his room.

Harry and Hermione followed his example and disappeared into Harry's room.

"Tom doesn't much like muggles, does he?" Hermione asked.

"No. Both he and I have had some bad experiences with them." Harry admitted.

"How so?" Hermione tilted her head.

"Well, my relatives knew I had magic, and they hated me for it. They kept me in a cupboard under the stairs until I was nine. Not to mention the kids at school bullied me horribly, and the teachers didn't care. They knew I was different and they hated it. Tom grew up in an orphanage until his father found him. The kids there bullied him mercilessly for being different until he started using his magic to retaliate." Harry explained.

"Oh my." Hermione looked genuinely horrified. "My parents would never do that though. They accept magic."

"Are you sure? Or are they just pretending to because they love you?" Harry inquired.

"I'm not discussing this." Hermione closed the topic.

"Fine. What's up with them though? They kept sending Tom weird looks and it took forever for them to agree to you visiting."

"Well," Hermione licked her lips. "You have to understand. They see Tom and a vulnerable little girl and wonder... well... why he would be interested in you."

"Are you implying they think he's some kind of- of- _predator_?" Harry choked out.

"Well... maybe?" Hermione's voice was small. "They don't really believe it, of course. If they did they never would have let me come over. They're just... suspicious that he has ulterior motives. And that those motives might be sexual crossed their mind."

"Merlin, no. I mean, Tom basically saved me from my relatives." Harry was horrified that anyone would think Tom would hurt her like _that_. "He's _never_ hurt me, and never would."

"I believe you, Harry. Tom seems like a good person." Harry held back a snort at that. "Even if he doesn't like muggles and I suspect he isn't fond of muggleborns either."

"No, he's not, but he's making an effort. He's an intellectual and once he realized muggleborns might be born from squibs he's changed his views, somewhat. Before he never would have tolerated your presence in our flat." Harry admitted.

"Well, I'm glad he did. Enough of this heavy stuff. Let's have fun." Hermione declared.

The rest of the night passed quickly. They painted their toenails Slytherin green and Gryffindor red respectively, gossiped and giggled the night away. They cooed over Hank and Hermione suggested that Harry write for special permission to bring her to Hogwarts, since a boy in her house had been allowed a pet rat. They did a countdown to midnight with Tom and pulled crackers right as the clock struck midnight.

Surrounded by Tom, Hermione, and Hank, Harry thought it was the perfect beginning to a new year.

-o-

AN: Okay... this took forever for me to type. I had a big long conversation planned out for Harry and Hermione, but then I totally forgot it. I have a horrible memory, sadly. That said, what did you think of Hank? I had to add her. I just had to. I'm sorry if it seemed out of place, but I wanted Harry to have a pet of her own and thought toads and cats don't suit her, Tom already has an owl, so she needed something special, but not too unique like a phoenix or something. I hate those stories where Harry gets a pet basilisk, a pet shadow phoenix AND a pet baby unicorn. Just seems too unrealistic.

Also how was the quidditch scene? Was it okay? I've never written any sort of sports scene before, so I hope it was okay.

I will begin working on my one-shot to celebrate 100 reviews. Thanks so much everyone. A hint: It'll focus on Hermione.

Oh, and who can guess the anime reference in this chapter?

I plan to take a break from writing tomorrow to plot out the rest of the story. So far I have up until Halloween 4th year done, but I want to get my plans on paper. My plans are flexible and I'm still open to suggestions.

Best,

Eliza

(Eh, you've earned my real name by this point)

Edited October 22 2015


	10. Into the Forest

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 10: Into the Forest

-o-

Harry indeed got permission from Professor McGonagall to bring Hank to Hogwarts with her. Pansy spent the entire train ride back to Hogwarts fawning over her in between regaling Hermione and Harry with tales of her holiday. Apparently she had been to the Malfoys' winter ball and Draco had danced a single dance with her. The girl was over the moon at this fact but lamented the lack of Yule present from him. Harry wisely kept the fact that Draco had sent her a gift to herself. Hermione seemed somewhat subdued when asked about her holidays after the sleep over, but refused to elaborate. Harry had a feeling she had something to do with it.

At one point in the journey Daphne Greengrass invaded their compartment. Once she saw Hank she broke into a wide grin. She taunted Harry about getting in trouble for bringing a dog until Hermione had enough and quit ignoring her.

"Oh, honestly." Hermione rolled her eyes. "Do you really think Harry daft enough to bring her without getting permission?"

Harry held up the letter from McGonagall and waved it in Daphne's face. She wisely shut up and left with a sniff. The rest of the train ride was fairly peaceful, though Hank nearly peed on Pansy, to her horror.

They hopped off the train at Hogsmeade station and climbed into the horseless carriages. They spent the ride discussing their holiday homework and the answers they got for McGonagall's worksheet. They arrived at the castle shortly and parted ways to their respective tables in the Great Hall. Harry discussed her holiday with her quidditch teammates over their Sunday roast and thanked them for their gift. Flint, Bletchly, Pucey and Ares Merritt, one of the beaters, all attended the Malfoy's ball. They were quite interested in hearing about Tom and were shocked when they heard of his heritage.

"You're seriously friends with the Dark Lord's grandson?" Gemma Farley asked. She was sitting near her brother, Jason Farley who was one of the chasers on the quidditch team and couldn't help but overhear.

"Yup!" Harry popped the "p."

"The Dark Lord would be horrified to hear that not only is his grandson a half-blood, but friends with the Girl-Who-Lived!" Flint snorted.

"Actually," Harry began slowly. "Voldemort—" everyone in earshot flinched "—is a half-blood himself. His name was Tom Marvolo Riddle."

"What?! You lie!" Malfoy exclaimed. He had been eavesdropping on their conversation.

"No lie. If you rearrange the letters in his name you get "I am Lord Voldemort."" Harry explained.

"No shit?" said Pucey.

"No shit." She confirmed.

"Bloody hell," Flint whispered. "That's certainly something to write home about."

"Your parents were Death Eaters, right?" Harry asked.

"Er... Well..." Flint tried to find a diplomatic way to answer. You couldn't just tell the Girl-Who-Lived your parents supported the man who tried to kill her.

"I don't care if they were." Well, apparently you could.

"... They were." Flint eventually confirmed.

"I thought so. Do they know you're... familiar with me?" Harry asked.

"No. They just know you're on the team. I told them I have little to do with you. They wouldn't understand."

"I think I get it."

"Do you really?"

"Yeah. I do."

-x-

"Snape will be refereeing the next game." Flint announced at the beginning of their next quidditch practice.

"So we have no reason to lose, right captain?" The Ares, the beater who was a fifth year, asked rhetorically.

"Right. That doesn't mean we slack off though." Flint lectured. "We may have beaten the Gryffindorks, but we still have Ravenclaw to worry about. Their new seeker, a second year called Cho Chang beat Hufflepuff to the snitch like it was nothing."

"Yeah, but that's Hufflepuff." Bletchley Guffawed.

"Yes, the team we nearly lost to last year because of you." Flint sneered. Bletchley blushed.

"Sorry, captain."

The rest of the practice was spent flying drills and playing a mock game. Harry caught the practice snitch thrice during the hour they spent playing mock games, to the delight of her teammate. Harry was a far superior seeker than any Slytherin had, had in recent memory.

Harry was sweating from exertion, but freezing from the cold January weather by the time they were done practising. Practice was nearly four times a week before the game with Ravenclaw and Harry was starting to burnout.

"Seriously, Flint." Harry pleaded one February day after practice. "Cut it down to twice a week. We'll all burn out at this rate. Do you want to lose to Ravenclaw because we're too tired to play?"

Flint grudgingly agreed with her point and cut back practice. Harry was lauded as a hero by the rest of the team.

When the game with Ravenclaw finally came the team was in better shape than it had been in years. Bletchley finally managed to earn Flint's reluctant approval and the beaters, Ares and Gabriel Gonson, were better shots than even they dreamed they could be. Flint, Pucey and Farley moved perfectly in sync through the sky. They effortlessly passed the quaffle back and forth between themselves. Harry had beaten her own record and caught the snitch in just ten minutes at their last practice. They were more than ready for the game.

They viciously slaughtered Ravenclaw's team. They scored goal after goal while Bletchley blocked nearly all of Ravenclaw's shots. The beaters' aim was perfect and Harry didn't even have to run interference to distract the opposing team's chasers. She was able to focus on catching the snitch and distracting Cho Chang. Several times she pretended to chase the snitch. It got to the point where Cho stopped automatically following her, just as Harry planned. When she finally did see the snitch, she caught it before Cho even realized she wasn't bluffing. They won the game three-sixty to twenty. It was a humiliating defeat for Ravenclaw and they had not even needed Snape's biased refereeing to turn things in their favour.

After the game they held a victory party in the common room. Draco Malfoy congratulated her and spent the party in her and Pansy's company, to the blonde girl's delight. Harry however had a feeling of dread deep in the pit of her stomach at Draco's behaviour. She was fairly certain Draco was using Pansy to get close to her. It seemed that he had a little crush. When Pansy realized she was sure to be devastated. Harry resolved to assure Pansy that she had no interest in Draco, and that even if she did, she would never move in on Pansy's territory. Harry had to admit that Pansy was right though—she did fancy Tom, and it was a good thing too because she could see herself falling for Draco if Tom was not around. Draco had many desirable traits. He was smart, relatively good looking, rich, pureblooded, and easy enough to get along with if he liked you. She would just have to make sure he understood he was firmly in Harry's "friend zone," if that. She decided it best to ignore any more than friendly gestures. And if he came right out and confessed, she would honestly tell him she had feelings for someone else.

That night after the part she stared at herself in the bathroom mirror. What did Draco see in her? She was small for her age. She had yet to develop any sort of figure, unlike Pansy and (as much as she hated to admit it) Daphne. She was too skinny—her ribs poked out unattractively and her knees were knobbly. Her hair was constantly a mess and her jade eyes, while pretty, were hidden behind her round glasses. Whatever Draco saw, Harry didn't. But she hoped Tom did... though he probably wasn't interested in little girls like her.

-x-

Winter slowly melted away as spring settled into Hogwarts. The students were happy to be rid of the cold months, particularly the Slytherins who spent large amounts of time in the dungeons. For though the roaring fires in their dorms and common room warmed them, the dungeons were still frigid in comparison to the rest of the castle.

It was a sunny April day when Draco burst into the common room with little decorum.

"That oaf, Hagrid, is on probation!" he announced with glee. "He was harbouring a dragon!"

"Really, Malfoy?" An older Slytherin said. "You expect us to believe that? Come up with a better story next time."

"It's true!" Draco protested. "I saw it myself. Naturally, I immediately informed father—he's on the board of governors you know—and the board confirmed it."

"Wait, you're serious, Malfoy?"

"Yes!" He insisted.

"Wow. That oaf is a real idiot." Pansy remarked. "I believe you Draco."

"Thank you, Pansy." He said graciously, but looked at Harry to see how she reacted. He was disappointed to see that Harry was more interested in her muggle math textbook.

Malfoy spent the rest of the week trying (and failing) to get Harry's attention. It was only when he started a fight with Longbottom and Weasley outside the transfiguration classroom that Harry even acknowledged him.

Harry was walking to transfiguration from defence when she heard it.

"Do your worst, Malfoy!" Neville Longbottom sneered. His wand was in his hand and ready to be used. Weasley stood beside with his second hand wand also at the ready.

"Oh, believe me, I will." Draco smirked. He took out his wand a muttered an incantation. Neville started dancing uncontrollably.

"Petrificus totalus!" Neville shot off, but his dancing affected his aim and he missed.

"Hey! Stop it!" Harry called. She took out her wand and was about to cast a spell but was interrupted by McGonagall.

"What is going on here?" The aging professor demanded. "Really, Longbottom, I thought better of you. Detention for you, Mr. Malfoy and Miss Potter. I will not have magic being thrown about in the halls."

"What, that's not fair!" Pansy exclaimed. "Harry was just trying to stop them!"

"That's not what it looked like to me, Miss Parkinson." McGonagall retorted. "She had her wand out and was about to cast a spell."

"Yeah, the disarming charm!" Harry protested.

"Be that as it may, you still were participating in the duel, and as such have detention." McGonagall turned and entered the class, motioning for the Slytherin students to follow her.

"That is so not fair." Harry muttered. "I thought she liked me, too."

"Obviously not enough." Pansy mumbled back.

-x-

Draco, Harry and Neville met in the entrance hall at eleven at night for their detention. Harry had complained to Hermione that it was ridiculous to give first years detention after curfew, and Hermione had agreed, complaining that it was a whole night of revision for exams lost.

Filch arrived not long after Harry and the boys did. "Follow me." He said and led the children to Hagrid's hut, lecturing them the whole while. It was completely dark out. The moon was bright and high in the sky but clouds periodically rolled past it, creating an ominous atmosphere. Harry had a bad feeling about this night. The feeling worsened when they found out they were going into the Forbidden Forest.

"Isn't it, you know, _forbidden_?" Neville asked Filch.

"Only without permission and a chaperone." Filch grinned nastily.

"But there could be _werewolves_ in there!" Malfoy protested.

"Should have thought of that before you got in a duel, eh?"

Harry, Neville and Draco just glared at the caretaker.

Eventually they reached Hagrid's hut and he greeted Neville warmly, ignoring the Slytherin duo.

"I'm not going into that forest." Draco told him.

"You are if you plan to stay at Hogwarts, Malfoy." Hagrid retorted. Draco scowled, listened as Hagrid lectured them on safety precautions.

Hagrid led them to the edge of the forest and pointed.

"Look there," he said. "You see that silvery stuff? That's unicorn blood. A unicorn has been hurt badly by something, and it's our job to find the poor thing. The second one this week, too."

"What if whatever hurt the unicorn finds us instead?" Harry asked as she exchanged a horrified glance with her fellow Slytherin.

"There's nothing that lives in the forest that'll hurt you if you're with me or Fang." Hagrid assured them. "And keep to the path. Right. Now we're going to split into two groups and follow the tail in different directions. There's blood all over the place..."

Harry and Draco looked at each other once again before nodding.

"We want Fang." They chimed in unison.

"You sure? Hagrid asked. "I warn you, he's a bit of a wimp."

"We're sure." They chorused once again.

"Alright then, Neville, you're with me." Hagrid patted the boy on the back and almost knocked him over. "If you get in trouble send up red sparks."

The followed Hagrid down the path in the Forbidden Forest until they reached a fork in the road. They split up, Neville and Hagrid going on way, Fang, Draco and Harry going the other. The two Slytherins and the dog walked down the path quietly. Eventually, Harry broke the silence.

"Why would they send first years to do this?" Harry wondered.

"Why would they send any students to do this?" Draco countered.

"Hell if I know. But this is dangerous. We could be seriously hurt." Harry shivered. "I just have a really bad feeling about this."

Draco nodded. "Really, sending us into the forbidden forest with the oaf who's on probation. Is Dumbledore mad?"

Harry shruged and they continued forward in silence. Eventually the amount of silvery blood strewn about seemed to increase. They were likely getting close to the unicorn. The wind howled and Draco jumped, nearly tripping over a tree root.

"It's just the wind, Malfoy." Harry sighed. What a coward. Draco sneered and moved to walk a few paces ahead of her before abruptly stopping. "What now, Malfoy?"

"Look!" He hissed. Harry peered over his shoulder and saw it. There on the ground about five metres away in a clearing was a beautiful white unicorn. Its beauty was tarnished only by the pool of blood it lay in. It was dead. Harry took a step forward but stopped when she heard a slithering sound. A bush at the edge of the clearing shook, and out of the shadows a hooded being crawled across the ground to the unicorn. Harry, Draco and Fang stood transfixed. It lowered its head to the unicorn and began to drink the thick, silvery blood.

Harry stared in horror and her scar felt like it had caught on fire. She thought she vaguely heard a scream and looked to where Draco had been standing to find him gone. She looked back at the figure to see it coming straight for her. She closed her eyes, curled up into a small ball and waited. She heard the sounds of galloping hooves and a whoosh as something jumped over her. After a few moments, she finally opened her eyes. Standing in front of her was a large horse-like creature. It was a centaur.

"Are you alright?" the centaur asked her. He reached out, grabbed her hand and pulled her up.

"Y-yes." She stuttered. "What was that? Why was it drinking the unicorn blood?"

The centaur didn't answer her questions, and instead told her the forest was not safe at this time, especially for her. He then asked her to climb on his back so he could take her to safety.

They moved swiftly through the forest, only stopping when they reached the edge where Hagrid, Neville, Draco and Fang were already waiting for her.

Really, first eleven year olds were sent into the _forbidden_ forest with a man who's not only on probation, but can't even use magic, then he suggests they _split up._ And once one of them comes screaming at him because he saw something _drinking unicorn blood_, he doesn't look for the other student, instead deciding to leave her in the forest by herself and wait without even sending for help.

The young Malfoy was right. The school was going downhill fast.

The centaur let Harry off his back and exchanged a few words with Hagrid before leaving.

Hagrid then led them up to the castle and dismissed them after telling them that whatever was in that forest was too dangerous for a bunch of first years to deal with. It took all of Harry's will power not to comment on that.

When she made it back to her dorm she took out her diary from Tom and began to write.

_Why would someone drink unicorn blood? _She asked.

_Why do you ask? _Tom responded.

_I just had detention in the Forbidden Forest. _She wrote. _There was something in there killing unicorns, and I saw it drinking the unicorn's blood._

_Unicorn can keep you alive even if you're a hair's breadth away from death. However killing a unicorn is considered to be a monstrous crime, and one who drinks from one shall have a cursed life. It was likely my other self that you saw, dearest. I wouldn't be surprised that he requires unicorn to live._

_But he had a body_, Harry protested. _Voldemort shouldn't have one yet._

_A golem, perhaps._ Tom suggested.

_Maybe. Any ways, how's work? _The witch changed the subject.

_Work is work. I've had some interesting political discussions with customers and have expressed my desire to run for a seat on the Wizengamot this summer. Several witches and wizards said it was refreshing to see a young, half-blood who respected magic and traditions like me interested in politics. I think I definitely have a few votes._

_That's excellent! I'm sure you'll be elected when you run._

_Yes, so am I._

-x-

The weeks passed by quickly. Exams were upon them and Hermione had forced even Pansy to stick to a strict study schedule.

"Oh, I just know I'm going to fail my history exam." Hermione wailed as they left the classroom. "I forgot who invented the self-stirring cauldron and had to guess! Then I think I mixed up Emeric the Evil with Uric the Oddball..."

"Hermione, breathe." Harry said. "You can't have done that bad. Who did you say invented the self-stirring cauldron?"

"Gaspard Shingleton." Hermione sniffled.

"And you were right. Relax Hermione. Stop second guessing yourself. I'm sure you did fine." Harry soothed.

"You think?" Hermione asked uncertainly.

"I know." The jade eyed girl answered.

Hermione gained confidence as she went through her exams, much to Harry and Pansy's relief.

Harry herself worried little, as most of the theory was stuff she'd memorized what seemed like eons ago, and she had always been good at the practical.

She transformed her mouse into a snuffbox for transfiguration flawlessly, the complexity of her snuff box being second to none. In charms she easily made the pineapple dance across her desk and in potions brewed the forgetfulness potion as if it were second nature. In herbology they merely had to identify several plants that they had studied throughout the year. Not only was the defence exam a joke, but it was all theory, too. Astronomy was spent identifying different stars and planets on a map.

Finally, exams were done, and it was a good thing, too. Because just as Harry was settling into the common room one evening, her proximity ward alerted her that Quirrell had finally made a move for the stone.

-o-

AN: Okay, a bit short... but next chapter is super important and has a "big reveal". I won't go shorter than 3K words, though. Also, Neville was OOC for a reason. You'll probably see why next chapter. We're almost done first year, yay! I meant to plot until the end of the fic, but I only got to halfway through fifth year... After that year though things stop following canon as much, so I'm excited to get there.

Thanks to all of you who have reviewed. I'm sorry I don't answer reviews unless questions are asked, but it's just really hard with my health. Thanks to all who follow and fav as well. Your support means the world to me. Every time I check my email and see your favs, follows and reviews I feel all warm and fuzzy.

Fun fact: I almost called Harry Harriana instead of Harriet, but decided I liked Harriet better.

Best,

Eliza

Edited October 22 2015


	11. The Unchosen One

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 11: The Unchosen One

-o-

Harry excused herself from her friends and ran up to her dorm. She threw on her invisibility cloak and grabbed her Cleansweep 7. She made sure her and her broom were completely covered before she rushed to the third floor corridor. She skidded to a stop in front of the door. When she tried to open the door she found that it was unlocked. She opened the door and saw a Cerberus. She froze. She looked around the room and saw a harp. She wondered if perhaps music would help her get passed the beast and began to sing.

"Somewhere over the rainbow..." The Cerberus' heads began to droop. She continued singing as she made her way to the trap door and the Cerberus fell completely asleep.

Looking down she saw it was quite the drop and was glad she had brought her broom. She set her broom to float just under the opening of the trap door discarded her cloak and mounted it, all the while she sang so the beast would stay asleep. She descended on her broom and saw a large plant near the bottom of the room. She flew around it and landed on the ground. She saw a narrow passage way that was the only way through. She walked towards it and made her way through. She was immensely grateful that she had thought to bring her broom.

As she walked through the passage she started to hear a strange rustling sound. She paused momentarily and listened, but continued on. Eventually she saw a light at the end of the tunnel and ran towards it.

She was then in a large room full of flying... things. She saw a door across the room and ran towards it. She tried to open it but even the unlocking charm, alohomora, didn't work. She stopped trying and leaned against it to think. She eyed the strange flying things and eventually realized they were keys. They all looked the same to her, gold, shiny, and new. She continued to watch them until she saw one that stood out. It was silver, big and old looking. The blue wings looked battered, as if someone had already caught it. She knew this was the one. She mounted her broom and took off after the key. It was a rather disappointing chase as she caught it was ease. It had nothing on a snitch. She flew back to the door, slipped the key into the lock and turned. The key took flight once again as the lock clicked open.

She entered a dark room. There was no light to see, but she soldiered on any ways, clutching her broomstick tightly in her hands. A light suddenly turned on and Harry was met with the sight of a giant chess set. She faltered. She was horrible at chess. She bit her lip and looked around for another way across the room. The chess board spanned from one side of the room to the other, but she noticed the chess men were nowhere near large enough to reach the ceiling. She could fly over them. Once again grateful that she brought her broom, she mounted it and flew over the chess set, much to their ire. She dismounted at the door and tried to open it, but once again it wouldn't budge. The unlocking charm didn't work either. She had a feeling you needed to beat the chess set in order to unlock the door.

She had an idea though. If you can't unlock the door, get rid of it. She shot the disintegration curse at it and the door crumbled into dust. She smirked and walked into the next room. She sighed in relief when she saw that the next obstacle, a huge troll was already taken care of. She wrinkled her nose at the smell and marched forwards. She opened the next door and saw nothing malicious, just a set of bottles on a table. As she stepped through the threshold purple flames sprang up behind her. At the same instant black flames ignited across the room. She swore. She advanced towards the table and saw there was a riddle. She read it over and over again but couldn't figure out which bottles were safe to drink from, let alone which would take her through the black fire. She bit her lip once more and tried to think of an alternative. Eventually it occurred to her to try and will the fire away.

She closed her eyes and focused. She wanted the black flames to disappear. She wanted to leave the room. She wanted to go forward. She wanted, she wanted, she wanted. She opened her eyes and saw that the black flames were gone. She grinned and stepped through to the next and final room.

She saw Quirrell standing in front of a mirror.

"Ah, Harriet Potter." He drawled. "How nice of you to join us. I suppose you're here to stop me from taking the stone?"

"Yes, I am." It wasn't technically a lie. She did want to stop him from taking it. So she could take it herself instead.

"How amusing!" he cackled. "You, a first year, stop me?"

"I stopped your master as a baby."

"Please," Quirrell dismissed. "We all know that it was something your mother did. And guess what, Potter? Mummy's not here to save you!"

He sent a hex at her but she dodged. Unfortunately that left her vulnerable to his second spell which tied her up in ropes. Quirrell turned back to the mirror and mumbled something about seeing himself presenting the stone to his master, but not knowing how to get it.

"Do I break the mirror?" He wondered. "Master, tell me what to do!"

"Use the girl... Use the girl..." a high but weak voice rasped.

"Wh-what—who was that?" Harry stuttered.

"I'll show you..." Quirrell smirked and began unravelling his turban. He then turned so his back was facing Harry.

On the back of his head was a face.

"Voldemort!" Harry gasped.

"Yes..." Voldemort answered. "Quirrell, use the girl!"

Quirrell turned and grabbed Harry. He hissed in pain when his skin came in contact with hers and moved it so he was touching her clothing instead. He forced her in front of the mirror after he removed her bindings so he could move her more easily. She closed her eyes, but he cast some sort of spell that forced them open.

She looked in the mirror dumbly for a moment. Her expression was full of disbelief at what she was seeing. She saw herself smiling with Tom draped over her shoulders. He pulled something out of his pocket, kissed her cheek, and placed it in her own pocket. She felt a weight suddenly appear in her own pocket. She had the stone. What sort of mirror was this? She glanced at the bottom and saw strange, nonsensical words at the bottom.

"What do you see?" Voldemort demanded.

"I see myself and Tom. He's holding me." She answered honestly.

"Ah yes, my supposed grandson... What else do you see?"

"Nothing." Harry lied.

"You lie! You have the stone, don't you! Give it here!"

"No!"

"Give it here and you can live! You can join me even, be my right hand, my most faithful." Voldemort tried to bargain and an idea suddenly hit Harry.

"I'll give it to you on one condition. Wait, two." She began.

"Yes, yes. What do you want?" Voldemort was delighted, she could tell. She knew he wouldn't abide by the agreement, but then, neither would she.

"You won't kill me. And you'll tell me why you tried to in the first place." She said blankly.

"You mean Dumbledore never told you?" He cackled. "Oh, child, there was a prophecy you see... A prophecy predicting the approach of one who held the power to destroy me. My spy only heard the beginning, but it was enough to narrow it down to you and the Longbottom boy. Naturally, you had to be eliminated. Of course, you see why I can't uphold the rest of your terms, now, don't you?

"Quirrell! Kill the girl!"

"Yes, Master!" Quirrell pointed his wand at Harriet who pulled out her own.

"Ava—" Quirrell but was cut off by a green light striking him in the chest. He fell over, dead. Harry had beaten him to the punch, so to speak.

Harry was surprised it worked. She had never cast the killing curse successfully before. She watched as a shadow flew out of Quirrell's body and fled. She breathed a sigh of relief and turned to stare at the mirror once more.

"What is your secret...?" She wondered out loud.

"It's called the Mirror of Erised." An aged voice answered, startling Harry. She jumped and turned around; she muffled a growl of frustration when she saw it was Dumbledore. There was no way she could take the stone now.

"What does it do, sir?" she asked politely.

"It shows us our heart's greatest desire." Harry paused. Her greatest desire... was Tom?

"What about the stone? How was it used to protect it?"

"Ah, a rather ingenious idea I had. Only one who wanted the stone, but did not want to use it themselves could remove it from the mirror." The elderly man explained patiently.

"I see. Professor, I have some questions that I think you can answer." Harry told him.

"And I have some I feel only you can answer." Dumbledore replied in turn. "However this is not the place for this discussion. Come, let us go to my office."

"What about Quirrell?" The jade eyed witch asked as she followed after the man.

"We will leave him here for now. The stone?"

Harry handed it over reluctantly. She was quiet for the rest of the trip to the headmaster's office. She didn't have much to say and was pondering her heart's greatest desire. She knew she had a crush on Tom. But how could she not? He was handsome, talented, smart, and while uncaring and cold to most, he was gentle and kind to her. He taught her to protect herself and gave her a sense of self-worth. She knew she wanted him, but for it to be what she wanted most? That made her really wonder how deep her feelings really went.

"We're here." The headmaster interrupted her stream of thought. She followed him past the gargoyle and up into his office. It was full of miscellaneous instruments and portraits of the former headmasters and mistresses hung on the wall. Dumbledore took a seat behind the desk in the centre of the room and offered Harry a seat in front of it.

Harry sat down hesitantly and stared at the headmaster.

"The prophecy. Why didn't you tell me about it?" she asked.

"For many reasons, but first and foremost because it does not refer to you." Dumbledore answered.

"What do you mean? Voldemort said—"

"I am sure Voldemort believed the prophecy referred to you, but I am aware he only heard the first few lines."

"Yeah, and they described me or Longbottom. So he went after me- how am I not the subject of the prophecy?"

"Because had he listened longer he would have found that the prophecy refers to a boy."

Harry was silent for a long moment.

"So a prophecy, that doesn't even refer to me, ruined my life? My parents were killed for nothing?!" She began with but a whisper, but finished with a roar.

"Not for nothing. For you." Dumbledore countered.

"They died for a prophecy that doesn't even refer to their child!" Harry screamed. "They died for no reason! Why did he only hear part of the prophecy? Why couldn't his spy have told him it referred to a boy!?"

Dumbledore remained silent while Harry ranted. Eventually he spoke up. "That is enough. You should be relieved the prophecy does not speak of you."

"Why? Why should I be relieved? Voldemort tried to kill me any ways! He thinks it's about me, and he'll kill me for that!" Harry cried.

"Because the burden to kill him is not on your shoulders." Dumbledore replied. "You don't have to worry about defeating him. When he returns, you can be hidden and protected. And then, where he least expects it, we can strike."

"So I'm a decoy now?!" she shrieked.

"The fact that you got involved is a tragedy, however we must make the best of it so we can defeat him."

"Shut up, old man. I don't care. I hate you." Harry whispered.

"I'm sorry to hear that, dear girl." Dumbledore replied, his voice full of regret.

"Don't call me dear."

"I apologize. I won't do it again, Harriet."

"What's the prophecy? I think you at least owe me that much." Harry demanded softly.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea—"

"My life was ruined by this prophecy! I have the right to hear it!" she interrupted fiercely.

"... Very well." Dumbledore stood walked to a cupboard. He opened it and retrieved what, to Harry, appeared to be a fancy looking bowl. He took his wand and placed it at his temple. He pulled a silvery looking substance out of his head and placed it in the bowl.

"I don't understand—"

"This is a pensieve. Once can place memories inside it and view them once again." Dumbledore explained.

He prodded the surface of the pensieve and a figure rose out of it, draped in shawls, her eyes magnified to enormous size behind the glasses perched on her nose. She was vaguely familiar. The woman spoke in a harsh, hoarse tone.

"_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and the Dark Lord shall mark him as his equal, but he shall have a power the Dark Lord knows not... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies..."_

Harry was quiet for a moment. "That woman—"

"Is our very own Professor Sybil Trelawney." Dumbledore told her. "The prophecy was given to me during her interview for the position as Divination professor."

"But, what about the marked as an equal part? Longbottom hasn't been marked. I have, though."

"Just because it hasn't happened yet, does not mean it will not happen. And just because you have a scar from him..."

"I see." Harry murmured. "Thank you for sharing this with me. I- I'm sorry I shouted at you professor. It was rude of me."

"It is also completely understandable, Harriet."

"Thank you, sir."

"I must implore that you do not share this information with anyone else. Only a select few people are aware of the existence of the prophecy, let alone what it says."

"Of course, professor." Harry lied. She stood up to leave.

"Just one more thing, Harriet." Dumbledore stopped her. "What exactly happened to Quirrell?"

Harry took a deep breath. "I don't know, professor. Voldemort left his body and he just dropped dead."

"I wonder why Voldemort would suddenly leave as he did..." Dumbledore murmured to himself.

"Perhaps he realized you were coming, Professor." Harry suggested. "Perhaps he realized he would be no chance for you in the state he was in."

"Perhaps, Harriet. Perhaps."

"Professor... I have another question. One that's slightly off topic." Harriet began.

"Go ahead, Harriet. I will answer your question to the best of my ability." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled.

"I heard you were the one who placed me with my relatives. Does this mean you have the power to remove me from their care as well?" she asked.

Dumbledore looked at her gravely. "I'm afraid it's necessary that you stay there."

"Why? They're horrible to me. I slept in a cupboard under the stairs until I was nine!" She cried.

"Yes, but there are wards to protect you from Voldemort around that house. They rely on the sacrifice your mother made for you and the blood you share with your aunt and cousin." Dumbledore explained. "The protection will not last if you don't spend at least a couple weeks there each summer to recharge the wards."

"So the reason it hurt Quirrell to touch me was because of this protection? And I only need to spend a few weeks there?" Harriet asked. That was better than a whole summer, at least. Though she was a bit angry that she had to stay at all. Who was he to decide where she lived? There were other ways to protect her from Voldemort, she was sure. But for now she'd play the good little girl she was supposed to be.

"That is correct." Dumbledore nodded.

"Does the protection really justify what my aunt and uncle do to me?" Harry asked one last time, wanting to test how he felt about the way she was treated.

"Justify it? No." He answered. "But is it a necessary evil? I think so. They don't physically or sexually abuse you, do they?"

"No." Harry grudgingly admitted. Only that once, and even then Petunia had been horrified by her husband's actions.

"Then it is something you can tolerate, for the greater good."

For the greater good, her arse, Harry thought bitterly, but smiled and nodded to Dumbledore.

-x-

Harry spent the rest of her time at Hogwarts subdued. Even Hank brought her little comfort. Pansy, Hermione and the quidditch team were all worried about her, but didn't push her to explain what was bothering her. She barely even wrote to Tom, only telling him she had important information that she would only share with him in person. She ignored the rest of his messages. Between the way she was feeling about what she had learned and what she saw in the Mirror of Erised, she really wasn't looking forward to talking to him. She understood he was essentially the Dark Lord, and that _Neville Longbottom, _of all people, was prophesised to kill him. She could not allow that to happen.

She observed Neville a lot over the last few weeks at school and didn't see anything special. He seemed to be a mediocre wizard, if a bit shy, though he hid it well. Harry wasn't sure what to make of him. Did he already have special training? Was he going to receive it if not? Was he pretending to be mediocre? She would expect the prophesised vanquisher of Tom to be more like him—a genius, charismatic, talented with magic, driven. But Neville was none of those things.

She and her teammates won the final quidditch game against Hufflepuff, securing the quidditch cup for Slytherin. The game had been relatively hort as Harry caught the snitch within twenty minutes. The score at the end was one-fifty to zero. Harry did not participate in the party, instead opting to lay in her bed in her dorm. Pansy tried to convince her to come to the party, but was unable to.

Harry only came out of her funk when they received their grades. Harry was top of the class with Hermione a close second behind her. Neville Longbottom stole third place and Pansy fell towards the upper end of the middle. Harry wasn't surprised at any of the rankings. She had a feeling Neville had some sort of tutor from a young age to help prepare him for his eventual fight with Voldemort, and even with that tutoring he was still mediocre enough to be beaten by a studious muggleborn and Harry.

After the debacle in the forest Draco Malfoy wrote to his father about his detention and his father was horrified that first years were taken into the forbidden forest when something unknown had been hunting unicorns. It wasn't Hagrid who got in trouble though. It was the administration that had assigned the detention that did, meaning Professor McGonagall. She claimed it was a mix up and seventh years who had detention were supposed to be the ones to go into the forest, but the board argued that even seventh years shouldn't have been sent out against their will. In the end she was put on probation and removed as deputy headmistress. It was unclear who would be taking her place, but the Slytherins all hoped it was Snape.

The train ride back to London was uneventful. Hank spent the ride in her kennel, or "box" as Harry called it. Pansy spent it gushing over Draco and complaining about Daphne Greengrass and Hermione spent it humouring her. Harry spent it not paying attention to either of them, too deep in her thoughts. She would occasionally nod or hum in agreement at the right places, but otherwise stayed out of it.

When they finally arrived at the station Harry gave her friends a half-hearted good bye and crossed through to the muggle side. She scanned the crowd and found her aunt and uncle waiting for her. She slowly walked over to them, pulling her feather light charmed trunk behind her with one hand and carrying Hank's box with the other.

"What is that?" Her aunt sniffed.

"A dog." Harry answered. "Her name is Hank. She was a present. She will stay in my room except for when I put her out to... do her business."

"Fine." Her aunt agreed. "Your... _friend_ spoke with us. He will be picking you up on your birthday to spend the rest of the holidays with him."

Harry smiled. She looked forward to that. She followed her relatives to the car and got in after placing her trunk in the boot. They rode in silence.

-x-

The time leading up to her birthday passed slowly. Harry spent most of her time doing chores for the Dursleys, doing her summer homework, and cuddling with Hank when she had free time. Her homework was rather easy. She completed most of her essays without even cracking open a book.

After Harry finished her chores for the day in the weeks leading up to her birthday she would take Hank for a walk. She often brought her journal with her and sat in her and Tom's spot writing to him with Hank cuddled close to her.

She had begun to talk to Tom again after she returned home. They didn't speak of anything important, but Harry gradually grew more comfortable talking to him after realizing he was what she desired most. She told him nothing of her escapade with the philosopher's stone, choosing to wait until she could tell him the full story in person. Instead they talked about how she and her fellow students did at school, and they spoke of what they'd do together on her birthday.

They were going to have a party—Harry's first birthday party ever. There would be cake, presents, and she could invite as many friends as she wanted. The Leaky Cauldron would be catering it, and Harry could decorate the main area of their apartment however she wished. She wasn't sure what she'd do about decorating, but she planned to just invite Hermione and Pansy. She wasn't close enough to anyone else to invite them to her birthday. She wanted it to be special, and so only special people like her friends and Tom could be there.

Dudley, who didn't know where she really had been going to school, taunted her about going to a special boarding school for "slow" kids. It would appear that her aunt and uncle spread that story based on her poor grades from primary school. She resented the fact that she hadn't cared enough to do well in school, but in the end figured her relatives could have come up with something much worse, like her attending a school for the criminally insane.

As it crept closer to her birthday she grew more and more excited. The Dursleys kept her busy cleaning the day before it as they had an important dinner with some big wig and his wife. Harry didn't care enough to pay attention to what they did exactly, but she thought their name was the Masons. It didn't affect her as Tom would be picking her up in the morning and they wouldn't be coming until dinner.

She went to bed that night with a smile on her face. Soon, she'd be with Tom, just as her heart desired.

-o-

AN: Well, what do you think? Was anyone surprised?

A big thank you to nemesisswan for their concrit on several chapters. You rock!

I love you guys.

Best,

Eliza

Edited October 22 2015


	12. Summer Daze

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 12: Summer Daze

-o-

Harry woke up bright and early on her birthday. She put on a pretty light green dress with black details that matched her eyes, white tights and black Mary Janes. She wanted to look pretty for Tom after not seeing him for several months. She packed up the rest of her clothes and books in her trunk and put Hank in her box. Tom said he would be there to pick her up at ten 'o'clock in the morning, and it was already nine-thirty when she finished packing. She hauled her trunk downstairs and out the front door. She then ran back upstairs to grab Hank. She set her trunk on the lawn and sat down on the front step to wait for Tom.

She didn't wait long. She saw him walking down the sidewalk and ran towards him, throwing herself in his arms as was becoming habit. He caught her and lifted her up higher to twirl her around with a smirk on his face.

"Happy birthday, dearest." He said after he put her down. She took a moment to observe him. He was wearing black jeans, a light green dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and a dark grey waistcoat.

"Thanks, Tom!" She giggled.

"Let's grab your trunk and dog. We'll walk back to the alley I apparated to and apparate back." He told her.

Harry nodded and when to grab her trunk and Hank. They walked in silence until they reached the alley, where Tom told her to hold on to his arm and apparated them to the living room of their apartment.

"Ugh. I'll never get used to that." Harry commented as she put her trunk and Hank down. "Why do people willingly do that?"

"It's convenient and it's not so bad if you're the only person apparating." Tom answered.

"I think I'll stick to brooms." Harry muttered.

"You could always try flooing places or taking a portkey." Tom suggested.

"Maybe." Harry shrugged. "I'm going to go unpack."

She bent down to open Hank's box so the papillon could get out and grabbed her trunk. She brought it to her room and spent the next half hour unpacking her clothes and books. She left most of her school supplies in her trunk so she didn't have to bother repacking them at the end of the holiday. She had been tempted to just live out of her trunk but had a feeling Tom would disapprove.

She was lying on her bed when she heard a knock at her bedroom door and jumped.

"Come in!" she hollered.

"You mentioned you needed to talk to me about something important?" Tom began as he walked over to sit on the edge of Harry's bed.

"Yeah..." Harry sat up. "I uh... Well... I tried to steal the philosopher's stone."

"I'm guessing you couldn't make it passed all the obstacles?"

"No. I made it, but I should start from the beginning." Harry told him with a glare. Though she was annoyed he didn't think she could get passed the obstacles, she didn't bother commenting on it. She started with how she thought it would be easiest to go after Quirrell because he would have already taken out several of the traps. She told him how she made it through each obstacle and her confrontation with Voldemort.

"My other self was possessing Quirrell?" Tom nearly swore. "And you made it out alright?"

Harry continued her story carefully omitting what she had seen in the Mirror of Erised, though Tom smirked as if he knew. When she got to the part about the prophecy, he froze. She hastily assured him that it wasn't actually about her.

"How do you know?" he asked.

"Dumbledore." Harry answered. "He shared the entire prophecy with me. It spoke of a boy who would have to kill the Dark Lord, not a girl. Dumbledore thinks it refers to Neville Longbottom. I think he's been giving Neville special training."

"I see... What else did Dumbledore say?"

"He all but said I was going to be used as a decoy—" Tom hissed "—but I'm not going to let him. He also told me staying with the Dursleys affords me some sort of protection based on my mother's sacrifice."

"The protection your mother's sacrifice affords you is negligible compared to how well I can protect you. I'm working on a way to get you out of there; I just need to be elected to the Wizengamot first. Luckily there is an election coming up in October. I should be able to implement my plan by next summer at the latest." Tom explained.

"You mean to pass some sort of law, right?" Harry guessed.

"Yes." He simply stated. "I'll need your help with it. Your story needs to go public to gain support."

"My story?" Harry bit her lip. "You mean tell everyone about the way the Dursleys treated me?"

"Exactly. If a law could have saved their saviour..." Tom began.

"...It'll be easier to pass." Harry finished.

"Indeed. I'll need another favour from you to help me get elected." Tom informed her.

"Anything."

"I'll need to be seen with you as much as possible this summer. I've made allies with many old fashioned purebloods but now I need the votes from the other side. The half-bloods and muggleborns will be more likely to support me if their champion, Harriet Potter, appears to support me."

"Oh, that's no problem whatsoever. When do we start?"

"How about today?" Tom offered. "It's your birthday, so I planned to take you out to celebrate. We can do whatever you want today and we'll hold your party next week on the 8th?"

"Sure! Can we go to the ice cream parlour?" Harry asked eagerly. She loved ice cream and they never got it at Hogwarts. It was a pity.

"Whatever you wish."

-x-

They went to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour around noon. Harry got a soft-serve chocolate and vanilla cone with pink sprinkles that tasted like bubblegum and Tom got a plain chocolate cone. They sat in the parlour by a window and discussed harmless subjects like her past year at school, her hopes for the coming school year, and what else she wanted to do for the remainder of her birthday.

Once they'd finished their ice cream cones, they went to Flourish and Blotts where Harry found a small pile of books that Tom bought for her. Next they stopped in Sugarplum's Sweets Shop and picked up some candy for Harry to eat once they got back home. When they were done Harry asked Tom if he would take her to a muggle cinema as she had never been there before and Dudley had made it sound like it would be a lot of fun. Tom reluctantly agreed and they dropped their purchases off at home and grabbed some muggle money before exiting Diagon Alley at the Leaky Cauldron.

They walked to the nearest cinema and decided on a film about three girls who find out they're witches and are hunted by a secret society dedicated to eradicating them. Harry insisted on getting popcorn, sodas and muggle candy to complete the experience.

They ended up spending the movie laughing at all the things they got wrong about magic and the ridiculousness of the spells. They were so bad they almost got kicked out until Tom discreetly cast a silencing ward to prevent others from hearing them. By the end Harry was laughing so hard it hurt.

"At least the snacks were good." She told him as they left the theatre. He just smirked and shook his head, prompting her to change the topic. "Where to next?"

"I was thinking you've grown about an inch or two since last summer and could use some new clothes. Pick a store and we'll pick some up." Tom suggested, not knowing what he was getting himself into as he had only ever been shopping for himself.

After the first hour spent waiting and giving his opinion (which was really just that the clothes were all fine) Tom started to get impatient. By the second hour he was flat out annoyed. By the time Harry was finished and had bought only a few of the many outfits she had tried on Tom was so frustrated he'd taken to hexing the muggles in the store. Harry gave him looks, knowing it was him that was causing the muggles to trip and things to break. She had to stifle a laugh when he made one man's pants fall down, revealing his lacy panties. Even Tom seemed particularly amused by that.

Once she was finally done it was nearing supper time. Tom led her back to the apartment to drop off her clothes and then took her to restaurant on the alley. It was a fairly upscale place and Harry almost felt like she didn't belong there.

A waiter led them to a booth at the back of the restaurant and handed them two menus. Harry took her time before ordering the barbeque ribs with mashed potatoes and veggies while Tom ordered a steak with baked potatoes and salad.

They chatted a bit before their food arrived, and once it did Harry remembered a question she'd been meaning to ask Tom for quite some time.

"You did the inheritance test at gringotts, right?"

"Yes. What about it?"

"What were the results?" Harry asked after taking a bite of veggies.

"I was able to claim the Peverell vault and a few other vaults from relatively unknown families that married into the Gaunt line. Most were empty save a few personal artefacts or a few galleons. Not much worth claiming, though I did claim it and transfer the vaults to my new identity. I also found out my father was descended from a squib of the Greengrass family." Harry blanched.

"You're related to Daphne Greengrass!?" she yelped.

"Ah yes, I forgot you do not get along with her." Tom commented. "I doubt it's a close relation, but we undoubtedly share a common ancestor several generations back."

"Wow. Don't you think it's strange that your father is descended from wizards? Like how common can it be for muggles to be from wizarding lines? There's not many of us." Harry wondered.

"More common than you'd think, considering how many muggleborns there are. About a third of our population is muggleborn." Tom pointed out.

"Yeah, but what is our population, anyway?" Harry scrunched up her nose in thought.

"About fifty thousand." He answered.

"That's not very many. I mean, the population of the UK is around fifty-some million."

"True." Tom took a sip of wine. "I don't know how many muggles, or squibs as the case may be, carry magical blood within them. It's possible if it goes back quite a few generations that many people can be descended from that one squib. Or it can be only one or two people descended from a single squib if it only goes back a generation. I doubt we'll know."

They continued to chat as they ate. After they finished their main course a cake was brought out from the kitchen and the staff sang "Happy Birthday" to her. She grinned from ear to ear as she dug into her cake. Tom ate more politely, but enjoyed the chocolate cake just as much as she did.

Once they were done Tom paid for their meal and they walked back to the apartment. When they entered Hank ran up to her and began licking her shoes. Harry giggled and picked up her dog.

"Did you miss me, baby Hank?" she cooed. Hank started to kiss her face, as if to say that yes, she did. Harry set Hank down after a few moments and went to her room to change. Once changed she came out of her room and walked over to Tom.

"Thank you, Tom. I had a wonderful birthday." She pulled his head down and kissed him on the cheek. She ran off to her room with Hank before she could see his pleased smirk.

-x-

She spent the week before her party being tutored in illegal magic by Tom. She was advancing quickly with the less violent curses and charms, but had a bit of a mental block about the spells that couldn't be used for anything other than violence.

"I don't see the point." She told Tom. "I'd rather kill someone quickly and efficiently."

"Perhaps, but some people don't deserve a quick death. Some deserve prolonged suffering, like your relatives. Other times you're aiming to disable, not kill, and some of these spells are perfect for that." Tom explained patiently.

"But can't I just stun them or something?" She countered.

"No, because it's easy to reverse. Other spells like the bone shattering curse, for example, cause damage that is disabling but difficult to reverse without proper healer training." Tom retorted.

"Yeah, fine." Harry acquiesced. "But do I really need to know this stuff?"

Tom gave her a "how dumb are you look" and she flinched. "You will be going up against Voldemort and Dumbledore both. Both have staunch supporters that will follow them into battle. Yes, you need to know this stuff."

Tom pushed her harder after that conversation, only giving her a break on the 7th to rest up for her party the next day. She spent the day decorating the dining room with lilac streamers and a banner that said "Happy Birthday Harriet."

When Pansy and Hermione arrived the next day they played several magical and muggle board games, though Pansy was reluctant to play the latter. In the end she admitted muggles had some good ideas, but magic would really spice up the games. Harry and Hermione agreed.

After the games they had pizza for lunch and ate as much cake as they possibly could. Hermione and Pansy then presented their gifts to Harry. From Hermione she received a broomstick servicing kit and from Pansy she received a beautiful silver and jade hairpin that matched her eyes perfectly. Harry thanks them profusely and opened the gifts from the quidditch team she had received on her actual birthday. From them she received an assortment of candy, Quidditch Through the Ages, a practice snitch and a few other miscellaneous goods. Overall she felt she got a pretty good haul for her birthday.

The rest of the party was spent gossiping and experimenting with makeup. Unlike Daphne, Pansy really seemed to know what she was doing. She taught Hermione and Harry how to apply eyeliner, eye shadow, and blush properly. Harry and Hermione both had to admit they looked stunning when Pansy had finished with them. Both decided they would start wearing a little make up every day.

At one point Harry took out her wand to levitate something over to her when Hermione gasped and fretted about Harry getting in trouble for using magic outside of school. Harry informed her that the ministry can't detect _who _is using magic, only that it's being used, and thus in places like the alleys and anywhere in the presence of an adult witch or wizard children under seventeen can use magic. Hermione was indignant, until Pansy pointed out that if a child messes up a spell in the presence of an adult witch or wizard, it can be set right, right away usually, however if done in a muggle dwelling that's not the case. Hermione saw her point, but did mention she thought it is not fair that muggleborns and muggle raised can't practice over the summer but most purebloods and halfbloods can.

Eventually Hermione had to walk back to Charing Cross road to meet her parents and Pansy's mother came to pick her up. Tom exchanged pleasantries with Emma Parkinson, who apparently frequented Beatrice's Books and had promised him her and her husband's support should he run for a seat on the Wizengamot. She also informed him that he was likely to be invited to a party hosted by the Malfoy's on the 20th of August.

Tom thanked her for the heads up and Harry waved goodbye to her friend. Once they were alone Harry removed the streamers and banners from the dining room. She tidied up her room from the mess the girls made and put her presents away.

-x-

The rest of the holiday went by fairly quickly. Tom tutored Harry in illegal and legal magic when he wasn't working or otherwise occupied. They frequented Diagon Alley together as much as possible, often while walking Hank, and in the Daily Prophet there was often some speculation about the relationship of Harriet Potter and the political candidate Tom Riddle.

By midsummer Dumbledore had noticed Tom Riddle and had written to him, rather curious about this man who claimed to be the grandson of Tom Marvolo Riddle. Eventually Dumbledore concluded that Tom was not an immediate threat and that he would not be required to keep tabs on him. Tom was sure the old man had checked the records to make sure that he was who he said he was, too.

Tom indeed did receive an invitation to a party hosted by the Malfoys and was allowed to bring a companion. Naturally, Tom chose to bring Harry. On the 20th of August Tom and Harry donned formal attire and floo'd to the Malfoy home. Tom introduced Harry as his plus one to the Malfoys and they greeted her hesitantly but politely. Tom could tell Draco was excited that Harry had come but jealous of Tom. He glared at Draco as if to tell him that Harry was off limits and Draco glared back defiantly. Eventually Harry tugged on Tom's sleeve to get him to leave Draco alone and join the rest of the party goers.

Tom spent the evening socializing with the upper crust of society and Harry spent a portion of it at his side until she saw Pansy and left Tom to his political machinations. Pansy got in a dance with Draco and Harry was forced to dance with him as well, lest she appear rude. She danced a few dances with Tom, to her delight and Draco's ire. As Draco eyed the dancing duo jealously, Pansy watched him and realized the boy she liked had a crush on her best friend. She spent the rest of the evening giving Harry the cold shoulder, forcing Harry to stay by Tom's side through all the boring conversations he had with the other adults. Pansy knew that it wasn't Harry's fault, but she needed the evening to be mad before she could think things through rationally.

When the party finally ended Harry and Tom apparated back to their apartment. Harry was relieved to leave the party. While the food was heavenly and dancing with Tom was nice, the rest of the party was downright boring and Pansy's avoidance of her only made it more so.

When she stumbled into bed that night she fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

-x-

Harry's Hogwarts letter arrived towards the end of August. When Tom saw her book list he was appalled.

"Lockhart is a fraud." He told Harry. "I'm guessing your defence teacher is fond of his works. Or his looks."

Harry giggled and went to get ready to go shopping.

They ended up going to Diagon Alley around noon. First they restocked her potions kit and supply of parchment, quills and ink.

When they went to Flourish and Blotts they saw a huge crowd jostling outside. Tom and Harry pushed their way through the crowd and made it to the entrance of the store. They saw a large banner hanging across the second story windows proclaiming the reason for the crowd.

Gilderoy Lockhart

Will be signing copies of his autobiography

Magical Me

Today 12:30-4:30 pm

"Bloody brilliant." Tom cursed. "Should we come back tomorrow, or push through any ways?"

"I think we might as well make it through. We're here already, aren't we?" Harry said. Tom nodded and they pushed through the crowd until they were inside. Harry grabbed a copy of the Standard Book of Spells grade two and grabbed the copies of Lockhart's books from the large display.

While going through the crowd to the check out Harry heard Lockhart announce he would be the defence teacher and froze in horror. A photographer pushed through the crowd, stepping on Harry's foot.

"Watch it!" she snapped.

"It can't be!" Lockhart gasped and looked right at her. "Harry Potter, the B—er, The Girl-Who-Lived!" He walked into the crowd and grabbed her to pull her to the front.

"Nice, big smile Harry, together you and I are worth the front page!" he told her and held her close to him. She shivered in disgust and covered her face.

Lockhart soon mimicked her as his hair suddenly fell out and pimples broke out on his face. The man taking the photographs began snapping photographs more enthusiastically. Harry giggled at how ridiculous he looked. She was sure Tom was behind this. While Lockhart was distracted she pried his arm off of her and made her way back into the crowd. She found Tom and he wrapped his arm around her in comfort.

"Thanks, Tom." She murmured with a blush. "Let's just go."

"Yes, I think that's best." Tom turned and shot a glare over his shoulder at Lockhart. He held Harry close as she paid for her books and didn't let go until they were in the safety of their apartment.

-x-

The rest of the summer passed by quickly. Hermione came over a few days after the debacle in the book store. She seemed to be a fan of Lockhart and gushed about all the things he apparently did until Harry and Tom told her he was a fraud. She protested and asked for proof, but eventually gave up on trying to defend her crush and quieted, though Harry and Tom knew they hadn't convinced her.

Harry visited Pansy at the Parkinson manor a few days before school began. Pansy had invited her over as an apology for being rude at the party. While Harry visited her she explained that she realized Draco liked Harry instead of her and took it out on her friend when she really shouldn't have. Upon seeing that Pansy was genuinely sorry, Harry forgave her friend and they spent the rest of the visit enjoying themselves. Parkinson manor was rather large and Pansy delighted in showing Harry around, especially in showing her room which was decorated extravagantly. Harry was sure she would have gotten lost in Parkinson manor if she lived there and privately decided she would never have a home that large.

Finally it was time to head back to Hogwarts. Harry was both excited to return to Hogwarts, which she still considered home even though she loved living with Tom, and dreading it because she would be separated from Tom again.

"We still have our communication journals, Harriet." He told her. "We'll still talk."

"Yeah, sure." Harry dismissed. "But I won't _see _you any more. It'll be strange. I've gotten so used to living with you and now I won't see you for a year."

"You'll see me for Yule holidays, dearest." He reminded her.

Harry continued to pout though. Seeing him once between the beginning of September and most of July was not enough for her. Though she supposed it would do wonders for her complexion, what with how much the man made her blush.

She packed her trunk the night before September 1st. She made sure she had all her clothes, books and supplies packed before she went to bed. When she woke the next morning she ate a light breakfast to save room for sweets on the train. Once she finished eating she ran up to Tom and hugged him tight. He was initially surprised, but wrapped his arms around her and kissed her on the cheek, eliciting a blush from Harry. He smirked. It was just too easy to tease her like that. He let her go and she reluctantly pulled back, her face still red.

"Come on. Grab your trunk and Hank. It's time to head to Kings Cross." He told her.

She nodded and ran to her room. She put Hank in her box, grabbed her trunk, and lugged both items out to the main area of the apartment. Tom grabbed her hand and she felt an uncomfortable squeezing sensation for a few seconds before they arrived at platform nine and three quarters.

With one last quick hug and goodbye, Harry ran off to board the Hogwarts express.

It was time to begin her second year at Hogwarts.

-o-

AN: We-ell. Summer is covered. Next chapter is the beginning of her second year. There should probably be only three chapters to cover the year, as without the chamber of secrets not much happens.

One reader wondered if I'd start to dramatically diverging from the books. I'm sad to say that won't happen until fifth/sixth year because there is no reason for a lot of events not to happen. E.g. no reason for Sirius not to break out of Azkaban, no reason not to have the triwizard tournament, etc. Though I will say there will be minor/major differences in certain scenes. It isn't until Harry is grown up that things really change.

Thank you for nearly 500 follows, almost 200 reviews and over 300 favourites. You guys rock.

Also, I'm excited to announce that I have planned Harry and Tom's first kiss. Sadly you have to wait until Chapter 25 or so.

Best,

Eliza


	13. Getting Back in the Swing of Things

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 13: Getting Back in the Swing of Things

-o-

Harriet searched the train for Hermione and Pansy. She found them sitting together in a compartment near the middle of the train. Hermione was engrossed in _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2_ and Pansy was reading _Witch Weekly_. They both looked up when Harry entered the compartment.

"Guess who was voted the summer's most eligible bachelor by _Witch Weekly_!" Pansy said with obvious glee.

"Who? Lockhart?" Harry guessed.

"No, silly. Tom!" she revealed.

"As in _my_ Tom?" Harry asked, feeling only a little surprised. Even blond and blue eyed Tom was incredibly handsome. She was secretly glad no one else had seen him with his natural and better looks.

"Yeah." Pansy confirmed, causing Harry to scowl jealously. She didn't like the idea of other people fawning over Tom and desiring him. He was Harrys! Or at least she hoped he would be one day in the future when she was grown up enough for him to notice her.

The girls continued to chat about miscellaneous things until half way through the journey when the compartment door opened, revealing Draco Malfoy.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked. Harry looked to Pansy who nodded and then to Hermione who shrugged.

"Sure." Harry told him. Luckily she had sat down next to Hermione and their things took up the rest of the room on their side of the compartment, so Draco was forced to sit next to Pansy who sat across from them. He greeted Pansy and Hermione politely but distantly and then turned to Harry.

"What's the deal with you and Riddle?" he asked.

"I'd have thought that I answered this question last year." Harry raised her eyebrows.

"You said you met a few years ago and were friends, but you spent the entire summer attached at the hip!" Draco exclaimed. "That's a bit more friendly than one had thought. In addition, he took you as his _date_ to our party."

"Well," Harry began. "My relatives and I don't get along too well, so I spent most of the summer living with Tom. As for the party, Tom thought it would give me some good experience for when I have to attend similar functions and if I go into politics in the future. Plus it makes him look good if he's shown to be a good friend of the Girl-Who-Lived."

"I just don't trust that guy." Draco mumbled with his arms crossed over his chest. "There's something off about him."

"Something other than the fact his grandfather's the Dark Lord?" Pansy asked.

"Yes." Draco nodded. "He's hiding something. Something big."

"Maybe" Harry shrugged. "But he isn't hiding much from me." Only some of his plans, she mentally added.

"Oh really?" Draco raised a single eyebrow.

"Yup." Harry said. "I know him better than anyone else."

"That's not saying much." Draco dismissed. "People only really know his political platform."

"That's true." Hermione piped up. "But is the rest really anyone else's business?"

"Exactly!" Harry grinned at her friend. "Tom's a very private person."

"Yet you claim to know him."

"Yes." Harry said defiantly. "I do. As well as anyone can know Tom."

Thankfully, they were interrupted by the sweets trolley. Harry bought cauldron cakes and chocolate frogs while Pansy bought some Bertie Bott's Every Flavour beans. Hermione abstained from buying any sweets and Draco bought a bit of everything.

Draco sighed. It appeared he wouldn't be able to convince Harry there was something wrong with Tom.

The girls went back to chatting for the rest of the train ride with Draco occasionally commenting. They disembarked the train at Hogsmeade station and walked to the horseless carriages. Except Harry noticed they were no longer horseless. Large skeletal horses with large leathery wings and reptilian faces were attached to the carriages.

"Why do they have those gruesome looking horses pulling the carriages?" Harry asked. "It was so much cooler when they were horseless."

"What are you talking about, Harry?" Pansy looked at her funny. "They're still horseless."

"You mean you can't see those things? With the leathery wings and skeletal body?" Harry bit her lip. She wasn't going crazy, was she? She hoped not. Maybe only certain people could see them? Harry didn't know but figured that if she couldn't figure it out she could ask Tom later.

They rode in silence on the way to the castle. Pansy and Draco kept sending her strange looks. Hermione seemed to be too deep in thought to pay her friend any attention. When they arrived at the castle they walked to the Great Hall and separated to join their respective tables.

Harry was greeted loudly by the quidditch team who had already arrived. She smiled but remained quiet. She paid little attention to the sorting ceremony. She was completely deaf to the sorting hat's song and to Snape, who had replaced McGonagall as deputy head, when he called names. She only clapped robotically when her housemates did and ate in silence.

"What's up, Potter?" Marcus Flint asked her.

"Nothing, Marcus. Just tired." She lied.

"Bull." Marcus said after swallowing a mouthful of mashed potatoes.

"She thinks she saw these weird horses pulling the carriages." Pansy told him. A look of understanding dawned on his face.

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that, Harry." Marcus said. "Who did you see die?"

"What do you mean? Why do you think I saw someone die?" Harry asked suspiciously. If someone knew she saw Quirrell die then they might suspect she was the means of his demise.

"The horses you saw. They're called thestrals." He explained. "They can only be seen by someone who's seen and accepted death."

"You mean she really saw something?" Pansy's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Yeah. So who was it?" Marcus asked insensitively.

"Shit, Marcus. You can't just ask someone a question like that!" Ares elbowed Marcus in the ribs.

Sorry." He apologized with a wince. "Just curious."

"It was Quirrell." Harry said quietly. "He was trying to kill me. The Dark Lord possessed him. When Voldemort left his body he died."

"Wait, you're telling me the Dark Lord was here in the school and no one was any wiser?" Gabriel gaped.

"Yeah, no." Harry deadpanned. "I'm pretty sure Dumbledore knew."

"Dumbledore knew? And he didn't do anything." Pucey shook his head. "Useless old goat."

Marcus snorted.

"I suppose." Harry shrugged. "He is pretty useless. The philosopher's stone was hidden on the third floor corridor last year. Voldemort went after it. It wasn't even well protected—I was able to get passed all the defences and I was only a first year."

"Seriously? Is the old man senile?"

"Yes." Everyone who heard the question answered in unison.

"Right, dumb question." Marcus mumbled. Harry giggled.

The feast ended with a speech from the headmaster. He introduced Snape as the deputy head while McGonagall scowled. The Slytherins cheered and Snape smirked. He announced Gilderoy Lockhart as the new defence against dark arts teacher causing a large portion of the female population to swoon and the boys to scowl. The headmaster told them the forest was called the Forbidden Forest for a reason and shared a few other rules. Finally he dismissed them to their common rooms.

Harry was stopped at the door way to the Great Hall by a small boy in black robes with a Gryffindor crest on the breast. He grinned at her and held out his hand with a blush.

"Hi!" He grinned widely. "I'm Colin Creevy!"

"Er... Hi Colin. Look, I've got to go to my common room" Harry mumbled awkwardly.

"Oh." His smile fell for just a moment. "Me too, I guess. I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Sure..." the boy smiled and ran off. "What the hell just happened?"

"I'd say you've got an admirer." Pansy snickered.

"I'd really rather not..." she mumbled with her face in her hands.

-x-

The next morning Harry woke bright and early. She quickly showered, dressed and pplied some light make up the way Pansy taught her. When she finished she woke up her friend, grabbed her bag and books (minus Lockhart's as she doubted she'd ever even read them) and made her way to the Great Hall.

When she arrived in the hall after sliding down Slytherin's passage she grabbed some toast and jam. She took her time eating and observed the other students. So far mostly Slytherins and Ravenclaws were at breakfast. It appeared Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs preferred to sleep in. The Ravenclaws already had their books open while thy ate and the Slytherins ate politely but quickly.

She satat teh table and waited for Pansy to arrive and for their schedules to be passed out. When Professor Snape and the prefects started handing out them out she smiled at him and congratulated him on the deputy head position. He sneered at her and handed her, her schedule without a word.

When she stood to leave the Great Hall she was once again ambushed by the Creevy boy. And this time he had a camera.

"Hi Harry!" he greeted. "Can I have a picture?"

"Uh..." Harry froze. She did not want to encourage the boy but wasn't in the mood to hurt his feelings either...

"Oh and could you sign it, too?" he added eagerly.

"Well—"

"What's this, Potter?" Daphne Greengrass butted in. "Giving out signed photos? You've really let the fame get to your head this summer haven't you? Always had to be in the Daily Prophet..."

"Hey!" Creevy spoke up with a glare on his face. "Leave her alone!"

"What's this Potter?" Daphne smiled with sadistic glee. "You've got yourself a little boyfriend! How cute!"

"Oh shut up Greengrass." Harry rolled her eyes. "Why do you care so much? Jealous?"

"She definitely is." Pansy added. "But of you or Creevy?"

Daphne went bright red and opened her mouth to retort but closed it right away when she noticed Lockhart was walking over to join them.

"What's this about giving away signed photos, Harry?" he asked through a gleaming grin.

"Nothing, Lock—er, Professor Lockhart."

"Now, now, no need to be shy." He winked. "But you really mustn't give out signed photos willy-nilly."

"Look, professor." Harry shifted her weight from foot to foot. "I really need to get to class, you see..."

"Oh, no worries, Harry! I have the Slytherin first years first thing today! For a double period, too." Lockhart told her and she almost swore aloud.

"Oh, but surely you need to get prepared for our lesson, right professor?" she tried again. "That's definitely more important than talking with me."

"Nonsense!" Lockhart protested. "I always have time for you, Harry."

Daphne watched the scene unable to decide if she was jealous of the attention Harry was receiving or laugh at her blatant discomfort.

"Actually," A silky voice interrupted them to Harry's relief. "I need to speak with Miss Potter."

"Professor Snape!" Harry said in relief. "Of course!"

"This way, Potter." Professor Snape led her to his office.

"What did you need, professor?" she asked.

"I heard about the debacle with the stone last year." He told her.

"What about it?" she widened her eyes, hoping it made her look innocent.

"I was told you saw Professor Quirrell die and was... _encourage _ to make sure you aren't experiencing any... lingering emotional turmoil from the event."

"Oh." Harry said blankly. "Yes, well. I'm just fine."

"Very well. That will be all." He dismissed her.

Harry took a minute to gather herself outside his office. The day had already gotten off to a horrible start and she hadn't even been to class.

Harry groaned.

-x-

Defence was spent doing some ridiculous test. It included questions like "What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favourite colour?" and "What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition?"

Harry did have fun coming up with ridiculous answers though. She said his favourite colour was obviously vomit green, his secret ambition was to be a muggle women's underwear model, she thought his greatest ambition was getting people do believe he'd done half of what he said he did. She decided his secret talent was singing karaoke and that he enjoyed swimming in muggle sewers. Finally she wrote that his birthday was February 30th and that his ideal gift was lacy undergarments, much like the ones he desired to model.

He finally collected the test papers after thirty minutes of suppressed giggles and riffled through them at the front of the class.

"Tsk, Tsk. Only a handful of you remembered my favourite colour is lilac." He shook his head while Harry was horrified to discover they had something in common.

"Ah, Harry, my girl. I think someone wrote your name on their test and swapped yours out... I'll give you full marks since it's not your fault." Lockhart winked roguishly. Harry nearly threw up.

He continued to discuss the test for another half hour. When he finally put the tests away he took out his wand.

"Now—be warned!" Lockhart said as he lifted a large covered cage onto his desk. "It is my job to arm you against the foulest creatures known to wizardkind! You may find yourself facing your worst fears in this room. Know only that no harm can befall you whilst I am here. All I ask is that you remain calm."

Harry had a bad feeling about this and not just because she thought there was anything particularly dangerous in the cage. He whipped off the cover and dramatically announced that he had a case full of freshly caught Cornish pixies. Harry, Pansy and several boys laughed.

"You laugh now," he warned them. "But let's see what you make of them." He opened the cage.

The pixies shot off like rockets. They proceeded to destroy the classroom and when Lockhart shot some bogus spell at them they just became even more destructive.

"Let's get out of here!" Harry told Pansy, who nodded. They made their way to the Great Hall for lunch ten minutes early with Draco and his sidekicks following closely behind them.

"What. The. Hell." Harry shook her head. "That was worse than Quirrell."

"I know! I didn't know that was possible until now!" Pansy agreed.

"Hey Harry!" Draco called. "What did you write on your test that convinced him someone swapped tests with you?"

"Well... he wanted to be a women's underwear model for one..." she grinned mischievously.

Pansy cackled. "Nice one."

"I thought so." Harry laughed but stopped when she noticed Professor McGonagall approaching them.

"Would you like to tell me why you five aren't in class?" she demanded.

"Lockhart let out Cornish pixies and they trashed the classroom. We left before we got hurt." Harry told her with the most innocent expression she could muster. Draco and Pansy mimicked her while Crabbe and Goyle stared on blankly.

"Very well. Ten points from Slytherin for skipping class."

"What?!" Pansy exclaimed.

"Each." The professor added. Harry, Pansy and Draco groaned. Crabbe and Goyle exchanged confused looks.

"...Still worth it." Pansy said. Harry and Draco nodded.

-x-

A few days later the weekend was upon them. Harry was roused from her sleep at some ungodly hour by an owl persistently pecking her. She sat up and took the letter from the owl. She grabbed her glasses and shoved them on her face. She read the letter and sighed.

"QUIDDITCH PRACTICE IN TEN. GET UP, POTTER." It read in Marcus Flint's handwriting.

Harry quickly dressed and grabbed her broom. She made her way down to the common room and saw that the boys were already there, plus Draco Malfoy who looked away from her semi-guiltily.

"C'mon, Potter, we need to talk." Flint said. He led her over to a circle of couches and arm chairs and motioned for the entire team to sit.

"Sorry, Potter, but Malfoy's dad bought us all new brooms on the condition we let him on the quidditch team as seeker." Flint avoided her eyes as he spoke.

"So I'm off the team?" she said in disbelief.

"Not quite." Marcus finally looked at her. "I managed to swing that he would compete with you, and that if he loses you're still on the team and we keep the brooms."

"So let's do this." She sighed.

"We have a not from Professor Snape to let us on the pitch today, even though Wood booked it." He grinned.

Harry laughed as they made their way to the pitch. When they arrived the Gryffindors were just starting to practice.

"Oi! Wood!" Marcus called. Wood descended and marched over to him angrily.

"What are you doing here, Flint? We booked the pitch!" he demanded. The Gryffindor team walked up behind him. They had replaced their seeker with the first year, Ginny Weasley. She stood out amongst the larger team members.

"And we have a note from Professor Snape allowing us to use the pitch for our seeker trials." Flint smirked. Wood ripped the note out of Marcus's hand and scowled at it.

"Yeah well, we need to train out new seeker. And why the hell are you having seeker trials?" Wood wondered.

"Well, you see, Draco's father generously donated six Nimbus 2001 broomsticks to our team on the condition we let him try out for seeker." Marcus sneered.

The Gryffindor's laughed. "So he tried to get daddy to buy his way onto the team for him?" Ginny Weasley taunted. She glanced at Harry and blushed.

"Anyways, clear off the pitch Wood."

"No! I booked the pitch! I went through all the proper channels!" Wood protested. "I'll be telling McGonagall about this!"

"I think the deputy head overrides any authority a teacher on probation has." Ares snickered.

"Fine! Fine!" Wood shouted. "Guys—and girls, don't look at me that way Angelina!—let's go."

The Gryffindor team moved to the stands to watch the Slytherins.

"Probably the best we're going to get, Marcus." Jason commented.

"You're right." He turned to Draco and Harry. "Alright. I'm going to release the practice snitch three times. Best two out of three gets on the team."

"Fine." Harry grudgingly agreed. This was stupid. The spot was hers. She'd beat Draco, even if she had an inferior broom.

"Mount your brooms. On the count of three you can push off." The captain said as he released the snitch. "One, two, three!"

Harry and Draco took to the skies. Harry searched the sky for the snitch but saw no sign. Suddenly she started into a dive. She would show skill counted more than a fancy broom. Draco followed her, but she pulled a tight right as the snitch actually did catch her eye. Draco followed behind her, also having seen the snitch. She sped up, but he was gaining on her. She willed her broom to go faster and reached out her right hand. Seconds later she grasped the snitch and held it up. She turned and saw Malfoy was almost parallel with her. She's barely won the first round.

They landed and Harry handed Marcus the snitch. He released it once more, counted, and they pushed off once more.

Harry flew up as high as she dared. She scanned the sky for the snitch but didn't see it. She decided to keep a close eye on Draco, though. He sped after nothing, trying to bluff her, but she didn't fall for it because she saw a hint of gold on the opposite side of the pitch before it disappeared. She cursed at herself for losing sight of it, but was relieved Draco hadn't noticed it.

She circled the pitch for probably twenty minutes when she noticed Draco making his way towards her at high speeds. She looked behind herself and saw the snitch maybe thirty feet away. She quickly turned and sped off once more. Draco was right behind her but she manoeuvred so he couldn't pass her. She kept flying from side to side to prevent him from passing and reached out for the snitch. It suddenly dived and she followed, flying almost straight down. Draco dived at a more reasonable incline, and when she looked back she could tell he knew he'd lose. The snitch practically flew into her palm. She grasped it tightly and pulled up out of the suicidal dive she had entered. She jumped off her broom once she was at a reasonable height and grinned.

The quidditch team all gathered around her and patted her on the back.

"Knew you could do it!" Ares declared.

"Malfoy never really stood a chance." Gabriel snorted.

"No surprises here!" Adrian grinned.

Harry looked over at Flint and saw him talking to Malfoy.

"Sorry kid. You're okay, and you'll make a decent reserve, but Harry here is definitely going to be out main seeker." He told the downtrodden boy.

"S'okay. It's what I expected." Draco murmured looking rather dejected.

"Hey Malfoy!" she shouted. His gaze snapped towards her. "Nice game! We should do it again sometime."

A slow smile crossed Draco's features. "Yes. We should."

-x-

"Oh! Harry! Pansy! I forgot to tell you!" Hermione bounced towards them one evening after dinner.

"What?" Harry asked.

"I did the blood test at Gringott's!" she announced. Harry grinned.

"And?" she asked eagerly.

"My mum is descended from the Bones family, and my father is descended from the Malfoy family." Hermione announced.

"The Malfoy's? Really?" Pansy asked interestedly.

"Yup. I took a picture of the family tree to show you." Hermione told her. "It's a muggle photograph though. My mum just sent them this morning; it's what reminded me to tell you guys."

Pansy grabbed the offered pictures and examined them closely. "Huh." She said. "Guess you are related to the Malfoys. Just don't tell them that. They'll deny having a squib until they're dead."

"What's this?" Daphne interrupted for the second time in as many weeks. "This mudblood is claiming she's related to the Malfoys?"

"Don't you dare call her that again, Greengrass!" Pansy shouted. Harry didn't say anything, instead she sent off a barely legal hex that caused Daphne to crumple to the ground and begin screaming.

Daphne's screams attracted the attention of the teachers. McGonagall, Snape and Lockhart all ran over to the girls. Harry still had her wand pointed at Daphne when they made it to them.

"Miss Potter!" McGonagall shouted, appalled. "Release that curse this second!"

"She called Hermione a mudblood, she deserves it!" Harry roared furiously.

"Be that as it may, it is not your place to punish her." McGonagall told her sternly.

"Miss Potter, remove the Waking Nightmare Curse from Miss Greengrass or face expulsion." Snape snapped. McGonagall gasped. That curse was barely legal. It caused the victim to hallucinate. Most commonly it caused them to believe they were in excruciating pain, though some had more imaginative hallucinations. It was only legal because it caused no physical damage.

Harry reluctantly ended the curse, but continued to glare at Daphne.

"As it stands, Miss Potter, you will have a month's worth of detention—"

"—With me." Lockhart interrupted and winked at Harry. Snape and McGonagall stared, but nodded.

"Very well. A month's detention with Professor Lockhart." McGonagall said. "And fifty points from Slytherin."

"What!" Pansy screeched. "No way!"

"Silence Miss Parkinson. This is a very serious matter." Snape told her before turning to Harry. "Miss Potter, please follow me to my office."

Harry followed Snape until they reached his office. He sat behind his desk and motioned to Harry to sit.

"Miss Potter. Where did you learn that curse?" Snape demanded.

"I don't see how it's any of your business." She snapped and crossed her arms defensively.

"Miss Potter that curse is barely legal." Snape snapped back.

"Yeah, so? It's still legal."

"It's dark magic."

"No such thing." Harry smirked. "And you know it."

Snape looked mildly impressed. "Oh? And how do you know that?"

"You recognized the spell. It means you're familiar with that sort of magic. And anyone familiar knows the truth about it." Harry explained.

"Perhaps I'm familiar with fighting against it." Snape countered.

"I highly doubt that sir." Harry snorted and uncrossed her arms.

"Miss Potter," he sighed. "Just because a spell is legal doesn't mean you should use it in school. You're lucky you're not being expelled."

"I understand sir. I'll be more careful next time." She promised.

-x-

Her first detention was spent answering fanmail and forging Lockhart's signature. It was boring and repetitive. The amount of witches that fancied the fraud was depressing. She even found a letter from Fred and George's mum. She shuddered. She'd been doing a lot of that, that night. Something about Lockhart just made her feel dirty, like he was undressing her with his eyes or something.

Harry paused at that thought. A slow smirk crossed her face. She had an idea of how to get rid of the vile man. It would take a lot to work herself up to it, but she would do it before the year was out...

-o-

AN: Well. I hope her plan is fairly obvious...

I always have something to say in an AN until I start writing it, lol.

About Tom being DADA professor- if it happens it's a long way off. I'm still debating. To me Tom applying would hint that he's Voldemort to Dumbledore. But I think I have a way to swing it for 6th year. *wink wink*

Tom being blonde is not permanent. He'll change back eventually. But not for awhile.

Best,

Eliza


	14. The Dark Lady in Training

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 14: The Dark Lady in Training

-o-

Fortunately for Harry, Snape took over her month of detention after the first week when he realized how uncomfortable she was around Lockhart. Unfortunately this sat back her plan. She was slightly grateful for that though, because she still didn't have the nerve to go through with it. The hat may have considered Gryffindor, she thought bitterly, but there was a reason it didn't send her there.

After the debacle with Daphne Greengrass no one dared even whisper the word mudblood in her presence. Gryffindors were discussing her skill with so called "dark magic" and Hufflepuffs winced at the sight of her. She didn't care though. She held her head up high and the only time she bowed it was when Tom told her off for using a spell like the one she used in front of witnesses and teachers. She lifted it again soon when he informed her he had won the election.

He was quite interested to learn of Hermione's heritage. His hypothesis was currently that muggleborns were the result of two squibs having children. He believed for some reason the magic gene went dormant or recessive in squibs, instead of dominant like it usually was. Once he had the ability, he planned to make it mandatory that muggleborns do a blood test that goes back at least fifteen generations, just in case the magic wasn't as recent as it was for Harry and Hermione. Tom instructed Harry to have Hermione make some muggleborn connections and have her suggest they do the blood test at Gringott's in the meantime. Both girls readily agreed to the plan.

Hermione hoped she could prove that muggleborns had a place in the wizarding world while Tom wanted proof that casting squibs into the muggle world was a mistake. He told Harry he was planning to pass a law forbidding squibs from marrying muggles and from leaving the magical community. His reasoning was that it was to keep magic in the magical community and prevent the future birth of muggleborns, which expose muggles to the wizarding world. Harry thought this was a good idea but wondered how squibs would live if they couldn't leave the magical world. Most people would still cast out their squibs and they would have no way of making a livelihood since no one would hire a squib for work. Tom suggested a "home" for squibs that taxes would fund and laws that stated squibs had priority for jobs that required minimal to no magic use.

Harry thought that was a good idea, but it would be hard to pass. Tom said that he would enact it when all his plans had culminated, whatever that meant. Harry was pretty sure he meant when he took over Britain. Which, she figured, was inevitable.

-x-

Harry's quidditch teammates hadn't been too happy with her month long detention since she missed several practices before their upcoming game, only making it to their weekend practices. Harry profusely apologized and assured them she'd still catch the snitch, and luckily Flint didn't put any more pressure on her.

When the day of the game finally dawned on them Harry felt they were ready. Draco had lent her his Nimbus 2001 so she was on even footing with the rest of her team. She preferred her good old Cleansweep 7, as it had the sentimental value of being the first broom she'd ever wanted, but she figured she wouldn't protest just this once since she was already on thin ice.

She quickly dressed in her quidditch robes and met her teammates just outside the change rooms. The captain gave them a speech on what to do, what not to do, and how he'd pulverise them if they lost. The last point caused Bletchley to swallow nervously. Flint always had it out for him, it seemed.

They marched out to the pitch with their shiny new brooms. The Gryffindor team eyed them jealously. Flint and Wood once again squeezed each other's hands until Hooch made them let go, earning a giggle from Ginny Weasley who then glanced at Harry and blushed.

Hooch blew her whistle and they pushed off. Lee Jordan began commentating, but Harry tuned out his highly biased comments to focus as was becoming and George Weasley slammed the bludgers toward Harry as soon as they were in the air. Harry dodged both bludgers with ease and circled the pitch. She watched Adrian Pucey score a goal passed Oliver Wood and Ares and Gabriel block bludgers from her path. It seemed the Gryffindors wanted her out of the game. Ginny Weasley was flying above game and suddenly shot across the pitch. She had seen the snitch.

Harry followed after her from quite a ways away and was having trouble catching up considering the enormous distance between them. Luckily, Ares shot a bludger at Ginny who in her haste to dodge it lost sight of the snitch. Unfortunately the other bludger was shot at Harry. Harry tried to manoeuvre out of the bludger's path but it grazed her back, and knocked her off balance. She swore when she too lost sight of the snitch.

She checked the score and saw that Gryffindor was in the lead by ten—make that twenty, Spinnet just scored—points. Harry growled in frustration. She saw Bell attempt to pass the quaffle to Johnson, but Marcus intercepted it and flew towards the Gryffindor goal posts. With more force than necessary he threw the quaffle at hoop. Wood rushed over and tried to block the shot, but only grazed the quaffle as it scored. Harry whooped.

"Go Marcus!" she called. "Kick their a—uh butt!"

Flint laughed and nodded at her. "Focus on the snitch!" he shouted back. She giggled and saluted.

She turned back to the game and saw Ginny was staring at her. She winked at the poor girl, and she flushed a brilliant shade of red and averted her eyes. It appeared the Gryffindor seeker fancied her. She wasn't sure how she felt about that. Was homosexuality common or accepted in the magical community? She would have to find out. After the game, though. That took priority.

She flew around in circles, occasionally weaving through the Gryffindor players to distract them. The Weasley twins kept sending bludgers her way and she had to dodge one every few minutes. It was becoming annoying.

She growled in frustration as she almost fell off her broom dodging a bludger. "This is ridiculous!" she shouted. She distantly heard the Weasley twins laugh, and made a rude hand gesture.

"POTTER!" McGonagall shouted.

"Sorry, professor!" she called back. It felt as if she was mimicking Lee Jordan.

She suddenly flew up higher at an increased speed. She shot across the pitch and reached out her arm. The female Weasley flew after her. Harry grinned. Just as she'd planned. She led the girl around the pitch for a few minutes until she actually saw the snitch. Unfortunately, it was much closer to Ginny. She nearly swore, but altered her course subtly. When she was an equal distance to it she drastically changed her course and went after it. Ginny realized she'd been led around like sheep until that moment and cursed but went after the snitch with gusto.

When Harry was only a few metres away from the snitch she heard a crack. After a moment she felt searing pain in her right hand. She had been hit by a bludger, and if she wasn't mistaken her arm was broken. She swore violently and reached out her left hand instead. She bit her lip to muffle her moans and grabbed the snitch with her uninjured hand.

The students decked out in green and silver roared with approval while the other three quarters of the students hissed and booed.

Harry slowly descended from the sky and landed gently on the ground. Her teammates rushed towards her as did several professors.

"Broken, I think." She gritted out as she cradled her injured arm.

"Not to worry!" a voice said. "I can fix that in a jiffy!"

Harry groaned. Of all professors, why did Lockhart have to get there first? She tried to tell him she'd rather wait for Madam Pomfrey, but he didn't listen. He cast a spell at her arm and she felt her bone disappear. Her arm flailed around like a rubber. She looked on in horror.

"What the hell did you _do_?!" she gasped. Her teammates glared at Lockhart.

"Oh, er. Well, that happens sometimes, eh, Poppy?" he looked to the newly arrived medi-witch and chuckled nervously as he backed away. "Well, it's best that Madam Pomfrey deal with this from here..."

"Like I wanted from the start!" Harry shrieked. "Damn fraud..."

"Miss Potter!" Madam Pomfrey admonished.

"Sorry." She apologized once more. "But he vanished my _bone_. Can that even be fixed?"

"Yes, but it won't be without pain." She told the small girl grimly.

"Of course not. Nothing in my life is."

-x-

Harry spent the night in the hospital wing. Madam Pomfrey had given her a dose of Skele-Gro and some sleeping draught to regrow her bone and help her sleep through the pain. When Harry woke the next morning her arm was tender, but her bone was back.

She thanked Madam Pomfrey who told her that if she wanted to thank her the best way was to avoid returning to the hospital wing. She said she was fond of Harry, but not fond enough to want to see her again for at least another two months.

Harry grinned and agreed. She gathered the gifts her well-wishers had sent and packed them in the backpack Pansy had brought her. She took Slytherin's passage to the common room and headed to her dorm. She placed her backpack on her bed and started sorting through her gifts. The chocolates and candies she set on her nightstand and the cards went in the bottom of her trunk. When she was finished she pulled out her lilac journal from the nightstand's drawer and noticed that her name was silver, indicating a message from Tom.

She opened it to see he had sent a message about his political campaign and then several other messages asking her why she hadn't checked her journal before bed like usual, and they grew increasingly annoyed (and worried, she hoped) as the night wore on to morning, and morning wore on to afternoon. She sighed and pulled out a quill and ink.

_Sorry,_ she wrote. _Quidditch injury kept me in the hospital wing all night. Madam Pomfrey gave me a sleeping draught and I slept through until this afternoon._

_What on earth happened that you were in the infirmary all night? _Tom demanded right away._ You shouldn't have been that badly injured playing quidditch._

_Lockhart. _Harry wrote. _I broke my arm and he vanished my bone trying to heal it. Madam Pomfrey had to give me Skele-Gro._

_Incompetent fool. _She could practically hear Tom snarling. _Who let him close enough to do that to you?_

_I dunno. He was just the first adult to reach me. I think he practically ran over everyone else in his haste to get to me._

_That man has an unhealthy fascination with you._

_Maybe. But I actually have an idea..._

_I don't think I'm going to like this._

_You won't. _Harry promised.

_Well, get on with it._

_I plan to frame him for sexual assault._

Harry was right. Tom did not like her plan. In fact, he spent the next twenty minutes trying to talk her out of it, but eventually listened to her outline her plan and agreed that it was a good idea and would really drag his reputation through the mud. Harry grinned at her success.

They spent the next hour talking about other things. Tom suggested some books on defence for her and her friends to study and advised that she use defence class as a study period, much like history of magic. He told her he was asked to do an interview with the Daily Prophet about his relationship with Harry. He declined, but told Harry that they'd have to do something soon before the Prophet started spewing slanderous nonsense about their relationship, or hope that something more interesting came up and caught the attention of wizarding Britain.

-x-

It was second week of December when Snape came around to collect names of those who would be staying at school for the winter holidays. Few students were staying, though Pansy elected to when she saw Draco put down his name. Harry was once again spending Yule with Tom and put down her name on the list of students going home.

A week later Harry, Hermione and Pansy were walking across the Entrance Hall when they saw a small group of people gathered around the bulletin board. They seemed to be excited about something so the three girls pushed their way through the small crowd until they could see what all the fuss was about.

They saw a piece of parchment pinned on the board. It stated that a duelling club would be starting up and that the first meeting was that night at eight 'o'clock in the Great Hall. The girls glanced at each other and nodded. They would be attending.

On their way to the Great Hall they discussed who would be teaching. Hermione suggested Professor Flitwick, as she had heard he was a duelling champion when he was young. Harry wasn't so sure. He was already in charge of the charm's club and the choir. She doubted he had time for a third extracurricular activity. Pansy suggested Snape, as she had heard that he was quite talented with defence against the dark arts and had applied for the position each year. She suggested that perhaps it was the closest he could get to teaching defence.

When they finally did arrive in the Great Hall they saw that the long dining tables had vanished and a golden stage had appeared along the wall. It was lit by thousands of candles floating overhead. The majority of the school appeared to have come for the club. Each student clenched their wands in hand while they grinned excitedly and chatted with their friends.

"I just had a thought." Harry said suddenly.

"What?" her two friends asked in unison.

"Well, why would Snape or Flitwick only start a club up this year?" she bit her lip. "It's a new thing, so maybe a new teacher suggested it."

"You don't mean—" Pansy and Hermione began simultaneously, though one sounded excited and the other's tone was full of dread.

They were interrupted by the sight of Lockhart walking onto the stage in ugly plum robes. He was accompanied by Professor Snape.

"Well, guess you were sort of right Pansy." Harry sighed.

"Gather round, gather round!" Lockhart waved an arm. "Can you all see and hear me? Good, good. Now, when Professor Flitwick mentioned he used to be a duelling champion at a staff meeting it made me wonder why there wasn't a duelling club! Professor Flitwick said he was too busy with other clubs, so I valiantly volunteered to run one myself and Professor Dumbledore was more than happy to grant me permission. You never know when knowing how to duel may come in handy!

"Now, let me introduce my assistant! Professor Snape has graciously agreed to help me with a small demonstration before we begin. Don't worry though, you'll still have your Potions master when I'm through with him, don't fear." Lockhart winked.

"Wouldn't it be good if they finished each other off?" a student nearby muttered and Harry grinned. She saw Snape's lip curling into a sneer and wondered why Lockhart kept grinning. She was pretty sure most students would be running for the hills in terror if he looked at them like that.

Lockhart and Snape faced each other and Lockhart bowed with much twirling of his hands and Snape nodded his head jerkily. They then raised their wands. Lockhart went on to explain what they were doing and what they would be doing. After Lockhart counted to three they both swung their wands up.

"Expelliarmus!" Snape cried. There was a dazzling flash of scarlet light and Lockhart was knocked off his feet. He flew backwards off the stage and smashed into a wall. Harry and Pansy laughed while he slid down it, while Hermione looked on concerned.

"Well, Professor Snape may have over powered his disarming charm a bit, but there you have it!" Lockhart cried after he returned to his feat. "The disarming charm, splendid idea to show them that, Severus. As you can see, this charm knocks your opponents wand out of their hand... though it's easy to counter, and had I wanted to, I would have done so easily. But I felt it best to let you all see..."

Snape rolled his eyes at the flamboyant man and several Slytherins laughed. Lockhart announced that that had been enough demonstrating and started pairing up the students with Snape's help.

"Ah, Harry, my girl." Lockhart said when he reached her. "How about you and, er, Miss Greengrass? You're both two of my most talented pupils..."

Harry grinned wickedly. This would be fun. Her and Daphne stared each other down until Lockhart told them to begin.

"Furnunculus!" Daphne cried. Harry dodged the jinx and shot back a stickfast hex before she quickly fired off a tickling hex. Both hit true,

Daphne tried to suppress her giggles as she tried to move her feet.

"I said disarm only!" Lockhart shouted over the chaos. "Stop, stop!"

But no one listened. Spells were being sent off left and right. Finally, Snape took charge.

"Finite Incantatum!" he roared. Daphne could finally move her feet and it seemed all other hexes and jinxes had ended as well. Lockhart moved through the crowd and advised students on what to do to help their ailments.

"I think it best we teach you how to block unfriendly spells before we proceed any further..." Lockhart laughed nervously. "How about a volunteer pair. Harry? How about you and Miss Greengrass?"

He gestured for the two girls to move to the stage and they did as told at Snape's nod. Harry stood at one end of the stage and Daphne at the other. Lockhart approached her and tried to instruct her on how to do... something. She wasn't quite sure, seeing as he did a weird wiggling movement and dropped his wand. She wasn't worried though. She knew the basic shield charm and was able to even cast a more complex one.

"Three, two, one, go!" Lockhart shouted.

Daphne raised her wand with a smirk and said clearly "Serpensortia!"

The end of her wand exploded. A long black snake shot out of it and fell on the floor between them. It raised itself up to strike at her when she acted without thinking.

"_Stop_! _Don't hurt me!_" She hissed in parseltongue and then slapped her hands over her mouth.

Professor Snape stared at her a moment before he vanished the snake. Harry looked around and saw everyone was staring at her, several of them in horror, but some of the Slytherins looked at her with newfound respect. Whispers spread through the crowd. She heard mutterings of "parselmouth" and "evil".

Harry turned and fled from the hall. She quickly disappeared into Slytherin's passage and slid down the slide. She exited the passage into the common room and fled to her dorm. She grabbed her lilac diary out of her nightstand and began writing.

_Tom, I messed up._

She waited almost a half hour for a reply. Her bed hangings were pulled shut and she had cast a spell to prevent others from opening them. She heard Pansy pleading for her to open them up but she ignored her. She cuddled Hank, who had been on her bed when she'd arrived, close to her chest while she waited. Finally, Tom answered.

_What happened?_ He wrote.

_There was a duelling club. Greengrass and I were paired up for a demonstration. She cast some spell... "Serpensortia" I think. I accidentally spoke parseltongue in front of everyone._

Tom didn't respond for a few seconds. She bit her lip and stroked Hank's soft fur.

_Don't worry, dearest. While it would have been better had it not got out, it's not the end of the world. You'll quickly gain a lot of power in the Slytherin house. Besides, you'll be home for Yule soon. After the break things will have died down some._

_But how do I explain it?_

_The Potters are descended from the Peverells, as are the Gaunts, Slytherin's descendents. Say the connection is there, it should be believable. Say the gene must have been dormant until now. That should suffice for an explanation._

_I hope you're right, Tom. Thank you._

_I always am, Harriet. _

Harry smiled.

-x-

The next morning Harry was attacked by Pansy.

"You're a parselmouth!" she exclaimed excitedly. "You should have told us! This is huge!"

"That's why I kept it to myself until yesterday." Harry commented dryly. "Besides, now half the school is going to think I'm evil. A dark lady in training or something."

"Oh, well... Yes. They're already saying that." Pansy admitted. "But none of the Slytherins—or Hermione, in case you were worried. They're all really impressed! You have to speak it for us."

"You won't be able to understand a word I say." Harry raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms.

"Come on, please?"

"Fine, sure. I will tonight, okay?"

"Great!"

Luckily for Harry herbology was cancelled that day due to snow, so that was one class out of the way. The rest of the day she kept to herself and the common room as much as possible. She even ate lunch in the kitchen. When she wasn't able to avoid people Hermione the Slytherins stood around her protectively. She still heard what the other houses were saying though. They were calling her dark. Evil. She had already used "dark magic" in front of everyone. It wasn't surprising that she was a parselmouth, really. Even Lockhart was avoiding her, thankfully. She was grateful to Hermione who hadn't even said anything about her revealed ability. She just stood by her and gave silent support.

Pansy had spread the word that she would demonstrate after dinner to the Slytherins and they all gathered in the common room after dinner. Harry stood nervously in the centre of the room and looked around.

"Right er... You wanted to hear me speak parseltongue, right? Well... Here goes..." Harry began. She closed her eyes and imagined a snake. "_I really don't know what to say._"

The Slytherins stared at her wide eyed as she hissed to them. She said the most ridiculous things she could think of. She said the sky was purple with pink polka dots and the Slytherins just applauded her. IT was really rather amusing.

"You wouldn't be applauding if you knew what I was saying." She joked in English.

"What were you saying?" Ares asked her.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" she winked.

-x-

Thankfully winter break was soon upon them. Harry and Hermione were joined by the Quidditch team in their compartment and it was quite the entertaining time. Ares, Bletchley, Adrian and Gabriel all seemed a bit uncomfortable around Hermione, but Marcus and Jason engaged her in conversation as if she were a pureblood like them. They had some interesting conversations about things that muggles had accomplished. They didn't believe Hermione that muggles had been to the moon until Harry backed Hermione up, and were properly impressed with what muggles could do by the time they arrived at the station.

Harry immediately disembarked the train with her trunk and Hank's box in hand and looked for Tom, but didn't see him.

"Boo." A voice whispered in her ear. She let out a shriek and jumped, nearly dropping Hank's box. Several people gave her strange looks. She turned around and glared at the owner of the familiar voice.

"Not funny, Tom." She pouted. He just smirked and ruffled her hair.

"Come on," he said as he grabbed her trunk. "Let's go home."

They walked to the apparation point and after making sure Harry was holding his arm securely, they disappeared with a crack.

They reappeared in Harry's room. Tom let go of Harry and sat her trunk down. Harry put Hank's box down and let her out. The tiny dog ran to Tom and started licking his shoes.

"Looks like someone missed you." Harry laughed as Tom gently kicked the dog away from him.

"Indeed. I'll let you get yourself settled in." And with that Tom walked out of the room.

Harry unpacked the little things she would need while she was there but kept most of her things in her trunk. She still had a few outfits hanging in her closet so she didn't need to unpack her clothes.

When she was done she joined Tom, who was cooking dinner, in the kitchen. She watched him cook and sat the table when he ordered her to. When he was done they ate a light dinner and she told him all about the school year so far. He asked how her plan to ruin Lockhart was going and she had to admit that it was going poorly. She was having trouble getting detention from the man as he seemed to dismiss everything she did.

When dinner was over she cleared off the table and they washed the dishes together. Afterwards Harry was beat and decided to go to bed. She gave Tom a hug and hurried into her room to change. She fell asleep soon after her head hit the pillow

The next morning she woke up bright and early. Since she woke before time she decided to start breakfast for him as a surprise. She pulled out the eggs and sausage and began to cook. She placed the toast in the muggle toaster and grabbed the jam from the fridge. She set the table and waited for Tom to wake up.

He finally came out of his room a half hour later. He was somewhat surprised to see that Harry had decided to cook as he knew how much it reminded her of living with her relatives. He shot her a _look_ but she just smiled and shook her head.

They sat down to eat and were half way through the meal when an owl tapped at the window. Tom stood up and walked over to the window. He opened it, grabbed the newspaper from the owl and paid it. The owl flew off and Tom closed the window. He unrolled the newspaper and swore when he saw the front page.

"What?" Harry asked. "What's wrong?"

Tom handed her the paper. When she saw the headline she swore too.

HARRIET POTTER—PARSELMOUTH, DARK ARTS PRACTICTIONER AND FUTURE DARK LADY?

She scanned the article. Apparently several students had band together and went to Rita Skeeter for an interview. The article discussed how she placed "innocent Daphne Greengrass" under a dark curse for "no reason" in front of the whole school and how her ability to speak parseltongue just confirmed how dark she was. It talked about how she allegedly hated her muggle relatives. The article speculated that she was well on her way to being a dark lady and suggested that Tom Riddle was being used and deceived by her. Harry had to laugh at that part. The reason she knew those types of spells was because of Tom, and he'd done much worse things than she'd done. Plus, he was a parselmouth too.

When she was done she handed the paper back to Tom and he too read the article. When he finished he was furious.

"What do we do?" she asked him.

"We do our own interview, dearest."

-x-

Yule came and passed rather quickly. Harry gave Tom a hand knitted Slytherin scarf she had made herself and Tom gave her an oroboros pendant. She received a book from Hermione and some makeup from Pansy. The quidditch team sent her candy and Draco sent her a cute little purse that his mother obviously helped him pick out.

The day after Yule Tom and Harry went down to the south side of Diagon Alley. They barged in to the Daily Prophet office and demanded to speak with the editor. Once hearing that Harriet Potter herself and Tom Riddle had come to their humble office the editor came out at once.

"What can I do for you?" he asked. He was a small man who kept his black hair swept back. He wore a pair of thick glasses and had a hunchback.

"You can print a retraction, for one." Tom started furiously. "Calling Harriet Potter a dark lady in training is slanderous. Should you not print a retraction we'll sue for defamation of character. Of a minor, at that."

"Now, now" The small man said. "There's no need for that... It was just speculation. What do you expect when a new parselmouth emerges? It's known to be a dark trait. For all we know, she _is_ a dark lady in training."

Tom took out his yew and dragon heartstring wand that he obtained from Ollivander's shortly after gaining a body and pointed it at the disgusting man before him. He grinned nastily. "I dare you to say that again."

"Er—right. Sorry. We'll print a retraction. Is there anything else we can do for you, sir?"

"We'd like to give an interview." Harriet piped up from behind Tom. Upon hearing this the editor grinned.

"Ah, shall I call Rita Skeeter, then?" he asked.

"No." Tom glared. "We'd prefer a different reporter, if you don't mind. Perhaps Terrence Higgs? I believe he is a new junior reporter working for you."

"Ah, are you sure? This will be a big story— a big, big, story. Wouldn't you prefer someone a little more... experienced?"

"No." Harry said plainly. "We'd prefer Mr. Higgs, as I'm somewhat familiar with him."

"Right well... I'll call him to my office. He doesn't have one of his own, so you can conduct the interview there..."

"That is acceptable." Tom nodded.

The editor led them to his office and called for Terrence Higgs. Higgs arrived a few minutes later, sweating nervously. He was clearly worried that he'd done something wrong. When the editor explained he was to interview Harriet Potter and Tom Riddle he sighed in relief, but then gulped when he realized what a big deal that was. He couldn't mess this up.

The interview went smoothly. Harry talked about her home life with the Dursleys and why she hated them. She talked about how Daphne Greengrass had called one of her best friends the "M" word and that prompted her attack. She acknowledged that she was out of line and shouldn't have hurt the girl. Tom revealed that he too was a parselmouth as he was descended from Salazar Slytherin and Voldemort himself. He spoke of how he met Harriet and how he became her "mentor." Harry interrupted him to tell Higgs of how he helped her with the Dursleys and healed her arm when her uncle had broken it. They twisted things to go in their favour and by the end of the interview they were sure things would turn in their favour.

-x-

"I need your help." Tom told Harry a few days before the New Year. They were sitting at the table eating breakfast.

"With what?" Harry asked around a mouthful of cereal.

"Don't talk with your mouth full." Tom scolded. Harry blushed and nodded. "I plan to introduce the bill that will help remove you from the Dursleys soon. I would like your help drafting it."

"Really? Why?" Harry said.

"You're a very intelligent person and this affects you directly. It is possible that you'll think of loopholes that I won't."

They spent the next few days ironing out the details. Basically the law would prevent magical orphans from being placed with muggle relatives or in muggle orphanages. Harry thought all the fancy language they used to explain it in the bill's draft was stupid and unnecessary, but Tom assured her that it had to be done that way. They closed up any loopholes they could and by the end of the winter holidays they had finished drafting the bill. Tom told Harriet he would introduce it as soon as possible. Sharing her story with the Daily Prophet would hopefully garner enough attention amongst the Wizengamot to pressure them into voting the law into existence. Hopefully the law would be passed by the time school was out.

The only problem then would be the battle for custody.

-o-

AN: Longish chapter. Just one more for second year though. Yay! Year 3 should be 5 chapters and year 4 should be 9. I'm not sure about year five yet. I'm still working that year out. I'm trying to decide if Tom should teach fifth or sixth year. What do you all think?

Also, do you guys want lemons in the future? I've never written one but I could try if you guys really want some when Harriet is older. No promises though. I have posted a poll on how old you want her to be before she and Tom sleep together. Personally I have the age in my head, but I want to see your opinion before I decide for sure. Keep in mind he is 5-6 years older than her.

Also a picture of Hank has been linked on my profile, in case you want to see the cute little thing.

Thank you so much for all the feedback. I love you guys!

Best,

Eliza


	15. The Backfire

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 15: The Backfire

-o-

When Harry came back to Hogwarts she was met with great pity. Several students came up to her and expressed their sympathy for her and apologized for saying bad things about her. Harry kindly accepted each apology and expression of sympathy while thinking to herself how shallow people were. She did not want their pity now. She no longer needed it.

Even Dumbledore called her to his office to express his regrets. He let her know that he was deeply saddened by the way her family treated her and was appalled to hear that her uncle had actually physically hurt her, even if just once. Harriet graciously thanked him for his sympathy and asked if that was all.

"No," he said. "I wanted to know what prompted you to share your story, my girl."

"It got out that I hated my relatives, who happen to be muggles. I wanted to clear up that I hated them for the way they treated me and not because of what they are." Harry answered him.

Dumbledore's eye twinkled as he told her how proud he was that she had made that distinction. Harry inwardly sneered. While she hated her relatives because of what they'd done, she also hated muggles in general. She just knew better than to tell him, or anyone other than Tom, that.

She understood how muggles worked. They were instinctively wary of witches and wizards. The children (and even the adults) at school knew something was different with her right from the beginning without even knowing about magic, and they hated her for it. It was even worse with people who actually did know of magic. They feared what they could not understand and hated what they could not have. They were petty, jealous creatures.

Harry wasn't sure she blamed them. She knew it was human nature, and like muggles, she was human. She would always hate muggles. This she knew. But she did not wish them all dead. She knew it was impractical. There were billions of muggles, and muggles provided a lot of necessary things for wizards, like food. Almost all the food they consumed was muggle grown. They needed muggles, as much as she and Tom hated to admit it.

But that didn't mean they needed to make peace with muggles. It just meant they needed to hide from them. This, sadly, was getting harder and harder as muggles became more and more advanced.

They needed to separate themselves from muggles as much as possible. This meant not allowing muggles to know about them, even if they were relatives. And Tom had told her his plans to make it happen. She just had to do her part.

Harry and Hermione continued to meet in the library to study ahead like they had back in first year. Pansy still refused to join them as she felt that extra studying was just torture. They were, however, often joined by Marcus Flint and Jason Farley. While initially the they were only nice to Hermione for Harry, they grew to see past her blood status. The two boys often helped the girls with questions they had about the advanced material and in return Harry and Hermione told them all about muggle technology. Hermione delighted in answering all of the questions the boys asked, pleased that purebloods were trying to understand muggles. What she didn't realize was that Harry was guiding their questions from mundane, useless information like what a toaster is to the more dangerous muggle developments like computers, video cameras and weapons.

Marcus and Jason were terrified to hear that muggles could wipe out entire cities. They were also amazed at the population of muggles compared to witches and wizards. Privately, Harry grinned at their reactions. It was perfect. Soon they would be telling other purebloods of the dangers of muggles and awareness would increase. With increased awareness of the threat of muggles Tom would be able to push for laws and research into preventing muggles from using their technology against them. Increased understanding of muggle technology also meant the desire to replicate it with magic, or at the very least modify electronics to work with magic. From what Harry understood, it had something to do with magical energy interfering with electrical currents and energy. Or something. Tom explained it all to her but it was a bit too advanced for her to understand.

What she understood is that Tom felt that they could integrate things like computers and televisions into the magical community, and she thought that would be fairly awesome. It would just take time.

-x-

Time passed quickly at Hogwarts. January faded in February and soon Valentine's day was upon them. Lockhart, the flamboyant git, had the brilliant idea to celebrate. The walls were covered with pink flowers. Heart shaped confetti fell from the ceiling of the Great Hall like rain. The tables were covered with pink table cloths. Lockhart smile gaily while the other teachers looked like someone had vomited on them. Once most of the students had filtered in for breakfast Lockhart stood.

"Happy Valentine's day!" he shouted. "And may I thank the forty-five people who have so far sent me cards! Yes, I have taken the liberty of arranging this little surprise for you and it doesn't end here!"

He clapped his hands and the doors to the Great Hall opened. In marched a dozen dwarves. They were wearing golden wings and carrying harps. Harry stared at them in horror. The poor creatures, she thought.

Lockhart then proceeded to announce that they would be roving around the school delivering Valentines to people. He also had the gall to suggest asking Professor Snape how to make a love potion and asking Flitwick about entrancing enchantments. Both professors looked unamused.

Since it was a Sunday, Harry went to meet Hermione in the library to study. When she arrived she found her friend buried in a pile of books.

"Please tell me you weren't one of the forty-five who sent Lockhart a card." Harry said. Hermione giggled and shook her head.

"No, I wasn't." She told her friend. Harry stared at the girl.

"Right."

"I wasn't!" Hermione protested. "I'm over that silly crush on Lockhart. I like—er. Never mind."

"No, no!" Harry grinned excitedly as she slid into the chair across from Hermione. "Do tell. Who do you like?"

"None of your business!" Hermione glared. "Besides, I wouldn't tell you in the library anyways. What if he overheard?"

"What if who overheard what?" Marcus interrupted as he sat down next to Hermione. She blushed and mumbled something under her breath, but neither Harry nor Marcus understood what she said.

"Hermione here likes someone." Harry announced as Hermione shot her a betrayed look. "She just won't tell me who."

"Is that so?" Marcus asked casually. He didn't much care about the love lives of thirteen year olds.

"No!" Hermione denied.

"Yes!" Harry confirmed at the same time.

"Whatever." He shook his head. "Can you believe Lockhart?"

"Yes." Harry answered. "What I can't believe is the other teachers letting him get away with it."

"I imagine Dumbledore thought it was a good idea, and what he says goes." Hermione guessed.

"Probably." Harry and Marcus nodded.

"Let's get to work now..."

They did as Hermione suggested. Marcus pulled out his Charms text and began to work on an essay while Harry and Hermione read up on some fourth year spells. Marcus answered questions as they came up, not really caring much about his transfiguration essay. He already knew he was failing the class and would have to repeat it.

After about an hour of studying they were interrupted. One of the dwarves walked up to them, pulled out two cards and handed Marcus a card and the other one of them to Harry. He then informed the trio that he had a singing Valentine for Harry. She paled and tried to protest, but it did no good.

Luckily, Madam Pince came to her rescue. The dwarf got as far as "Her hair is as dark as a blackboard" before she chased the dwarf out of the library. But she had heard enough to be embarrassed. Everyone in the library was staring at her and muffling laughter. Even Hermione and Marcus were chortling quietly.

"Real talent there." Marcus snickered.

"Oh shut up. You got a Valentine, too!" Harry reminded him. Marcus pulled it out and looked it over.

"Yeah, but mine wasn't a singing one." Marcus said. "And it just says "Happy Valentine's Day." No signature or anything."

"I wonder who it's from?" Hermione said.

"No clue. What about yours, Harry?"

"Oh uh..." She looked at it. It had a cheesy "roses are red" poem on the front and was signed anonymous. "Lame poem, signed anonymous. But I'm pretty sure it's from Draco Malfoy. I recognize the writing."

Marcus snorted. "I'm surprised the little brat actually sent you a card. Who do you think the singing one was from?"

"No idea. I don't want to know, anyways." Harry shrugged. "Saves me some embarrassment that way."

-x-

Shortly afterward came time to sign up for third year electives. Harry asked Tom for advice and he suggested arithmancy, ancient runes and care of magical creatures. Harry decided she only wanted to pick two so she didn't have as full a schedule and with Marcus's help she decided on care of magical creatures and arithmancy. Tom seemed to put a lot of emphasis on the magical properties of numbers so she knew she had to take it. She could get someone else (Hermione) to translate runes for her if needed.

Hermione on the other hand had no trouble choosing which classes to take, she signed up for all of them. Harry thought that a bit silly since she was taking muggle studies and had been raised by muggles. Harry pointed this out and received a lecture about how her friend wanted to know the wizard's perspective on muggle. Harry eventually tuned her out and decided it was Hermione's funeral. Marcus cautioned her against it as well, as too much to do is what was causing him to fail three of his classes, but Hermione didn't listen.

Pansy elected to take care of magical creatures and divination. She didn't want arithmancy or ancient runes because they sounded too difficult, and muggle studies was unnecessary when she had Harry and Hermione around.

After deciding their electives Harry carried on her routine of going to class, talking with Tom, studying ahead, playing quidditch and spending time with her friends. Time passed by quickly. February soon bled into March, and March into April. With April came the Slytherin versus Ravenclaw quidditch game and Harry and the Slytherin team were prepared to dominate.

They practiced mercilessly. Marcus wanted them to completely humiliate Ravenclaw as the captain had gotten him in trouble with McGonagall. Marcus was furious about his two weeks of detention cutting into study time, and more importantly, quidditch time. He had Jason lead the twice a week practices in his steed, so he was the only one who missed out on practice.

Regardless of not practicing for two weeks before the game, Marcus played viciously, as did his teammates. The beaters constantly bombarded the Ravenclaw captain, who was the keeper, with bludgers. The opposing beaters did their best to defend him, but in the end Ares and Gabriel won out. The keeper ended up with a broken arm, several bruises, and likely a concussion by the time Hooch forced him to pull out of the game. With the keeper lost one of the chasers took over his position. But she wasn't as good as the captain had been. She let several goals through to the Slytherins' delight and the disappointment of the other three quarters of the school.

Marcus, Adrian and Jason played dirty. They earned the opposing team several penalty shots, but Bletchley blocked most of them.

Meanwhile Harry flew above the game and led the other seeker, a third year girl called Cho Chang, on a wild good chase. She had great fun in darting across the pitch in the middle of the game with Chang behind her. Often times Chang nearly ran into her teammates and received several glares from them, though not as many as Harry did. Eventually Chang gave up on blindly following after Harry if she couldn't spot the snitch herself. This was a good thing for Ravenclaw as not long after she stopped paying attention to Harry she spotted the snitch. Chang dived after it on her Comet 260. Once Harry realized the older girl had seen the snitch she took off after her. Draco's Nimbus 2001 had greater speed and Harry soon caught up to the other girl.

The snitch rose up steeply, forcing Chang to pull up from her dive. Doing so cost her several vital seconds, as Harry managed to pull ahead of her. Harry flew up almost vertically. She chased after the snitch which seemed to linger just out of reach. She was just getting frustrated when the snitch took a turn towards her instead of away from her. Harry quickly grabbed it and held it up high.

Hooch's whistle blew. The game was over. Slytherin had indeed dominated, winning with four hundred and forty points compared to Ravenclaw's one hundred and twenty. The stands occupied by those dressed in green and silver erupted into cheers, as did the lone Gryffindor sitting among them.

With two wins in their belt Marcus eased up on the practice until the game with the Hufflepuffs in May. Much like their other two matches, Slytherin won.

-x-

Whilst Harry was enjoying victory on the pitch, Tom was enjoying victory in the Wizengamot. After much debate and several revisions the law was finally put to the vote. It passed by the skin of its teeth, but it passed, much to Tom's delight.

After it was passed the issue of custody of several children was brought up. There were twenty three cases of magical orphans living in either orphanages or with muggle relatives. It was apparent that there was difficulty in placing a great many of the children. Eventually they ended up tracing the nearest magical relative and asking them to take the child in. In most cases they succeeded, but in several the relatives did not want a child to care for and they were left with a predicament. Tom of course suggested they build a magical orphanage and suggested that certain parts of the current budget be redistributed to a better cause. In the mean time several prominent families agreed to foster the children.

And then came the custody battle for Harriet Potter.

When the law passed Harry grew nervous. She knew Tom had a plan but she didn't know what it was. Would he try for guardianship? Would she be separated from him? What if her new guardian didn't let her see him? What if Dumbledore won guardianship?

Harry didn't follow the custody battle as closely as one would think she would. She trusted Tom, and didn't want to stress herself out over something she had no control over. She really didn't have a say. She knew the Malfoys, Dumbledore and several other families were all fighting for her, but she knew most just wanted her because she was the Girl-Who-Lived. But Tom said he had a plan, so she listened.

And when the Parkinsons won custody in June she was only slightly surprised. Harry found out Tom had approached them about this before the law even passed. He informed them of their relation and that Harry would need someone she could trust to gain custody of her, and they had the best chance of winning. When it came out the Parkinsons were related to Lily Potter the battle was all but won. Dumbledore, who had placed Harry with the muggles, had no chance based on that, though he was a friend of Harry's parents. The Malfoys had no claim to her other than the fact that they were a very prominent family and could support her. The same went for several other families. But a blood relation getting custody, no matter how distant, was already set by the other orphaned witches and wizards.

She received a letter from the Parkinsons shortly after Tom informed her they would be her guardians. It told her she was always welcome in their home, but she could stay with Tom for as long as she pleased. Harry was delighted and wrote back her thank you to Pansy's parents. She knew she would have to get them something brilliant for Yule as a thank you gift.

When she told Pansy the girl squealed loudly and started jumping up and down in excitement.

"You know what this means?" she said. "We're practically sisters now!"

"I'll be mostly staying with Tom, Pansy." Harry informed her. Pansy's face fell, but she quickly bounced back, saying it didn't matter if they were apart during the summer since they spent most of the year together.

Dumbledore was furious that the law had passed and Harry was removed from the blood wards. He tried to explain the situation to see if an exception could be made for Harry, but even with the protection it afforded her from the Death Eaters and the Dark Lord (who most believed dead anyways), not many believed it justified leaving her with those muggles after hearing her story.

-x-

Since June was already upon them Harry had very little time to execute her plan. She'd put it off as long as possible, but finally gained the courage. One class she channelled her inner Gryffindor and purposely got herself detention. It was only for a single night, but it would be enough.

The evening of her detention Harry walked to Lockhart's office. She wished she had some Felix Felicis to take. A little liquid luck would have guaranteed her success. She knocked on the door and Lockhart opened it almost immediately.

"Ah, Harry!" he said through a gleaming smile. "How nice of you to join me! Please, come in."

Harry entered his office and he motioned for her to sit on a sofa he had in the corner of the room. Harry palmed her wand and was about to cast the imperius curse when suddenly she was hit with a disarming charm. Her wand flew out of her hand and she turned to Lockhart with shock on her face.

"Professor? What—"

"Now, now. Not to worry. We're going to have a lot of fun tonight, Harry, and I don't want you to mess it up. Maybe you'll even enjoy yourself." He said menacingly. "Not that you'll remember it, of course. None of the others do."

Harry gulped. What was going on? He didn't mean he really wanted to rape her, did he?

"What do you mean... others?" Harry asked. "What are you talking about?"

"Ah, jealous Harry? Don't worry. They just filled the time while I waited for you to grow up a bit. Twelve is a bit young... but you're almost thirteen now, yes?" The man grinned.

Harry knew he was serious. She opened her mouth to scream but before she could Lockhart jabbed his wand towards her and muttered "silencio."

Harry started to panic as he walked towards her. At this point she tuned out what he was saying. She was too busy wondering how things could have gone so wrong. She only jolted out of her thoughts when he started to remove her robe.

She closed her eyes and wished he would stop. When he started to unbutton her blouse her eyes snapped open and she started struggling. Tears slid down her face.

"Now, now, don't be like that, dear. I might just have to tie you up, hm?" he winked. While before she had found his winks repulsive, she now found it disturbing.

She stopped fighting a closed her eyes to concentrate again. She wanted him to stop. She wanted him away from her. She heard a crash and a yelp and opened her eyes once more. She saw that her magic hand flung Lockhart back until he hit the wall. He appeared to be unconscious.

Harry sloppily re-buttoned her blouse. She was pretty sure she missed one or two, but didn't care. She ran to the door and tore it open. She continued to run down the halls until she ran into someone. Luckily, the person was Gemma Farley, a Slytherin. When Gemma saw the distressed second year she immediately asked her what happened. Harry tried to tell her but no sound came out. Upon realizing that the girl was placed under a silencing charm Gemma cast finite incantatum. Harry immediately started blubbering out her story.

"Lockhart!" she cried. "I had detention. He—he—he—he started acting weird. Said we were going to have fun."

She shuddered and paused, eying Gemma. Pretend it didn't happen, she told herself. Pretend this is just your plan. Pretend he was under the imperius curse and it wasn't really him. It helped her calm down, but she kept up her distraught demeanour.

"What happened, Potter?" Gemma shook her by her shoulders lightly. "You need to tell me what happened."

"He said he'd done it to others and made them forget." Harry sobbed. "Then he started taking off my robe. When he started to unbutton my shirt my magic reacted and he flew away and hit the wall. I think he's knocked out."

"Sh... it's okay Harry." Gemma soothed. "Come on, let's go see the headmaster... You need to tell him what happened, okay?"

Harry nodded.

Gemma led Harry to the headmaster's office. The gargoyle jumped aside after Gemma spoke the password. When they reached Dumbledore Gemma prompted her to share what happened again. Harry did so through sobs. Once she finished Dumbledore looked furious. He floo'd the department of magical law enforcement and asked them to send some aurors through. When they arrived, he told Harry and Gemma to wait in his office while he led the aurors to Lockhart.

By the end of the night Lockhart was in a cell and Harry was in bed writing to Tom.

_My plan worked. _She lied. She didn't want Tom to know the truth. What would he think of her if he did?

_Excellent. _Tom wrote back. _And you're okay?_

_Yes,_ she said. _I am._

_Good. Then all is well._

Harry spent the rest of the year rather subdued, though she tried to hide it. She was glad Pansy had taught her how to apply makeup because she needed it to hide the dark circles under eyes from lack of sleep. She constantly had nightmares that Lockhart had gotten further than he actually did.

Her friends knew about what happened, of course. Everyone knew. It was in the papers. "Gilderoy Lockhart Assaults Girl-Who-Lived!" the headlines proclaimed. Harry didn't mind. It's what she had planned. And as long as she pretended it was just all her plan she was okay.

Mostly.

-o-

AN: Sorry for the delay, guys. I had a bit of writer's block and then I've been busy studying. I have an exam on Friday so don't expect anything until Saturday or Sunday.

Thank you all so much for the reviews, favs, and follows. They mean so much to me. Every time I check my email and see that people are reading my story I feel so amazing. You guys help me a lot, you know.

I hope I did okay with the Lockhart scene. I've never been in a situation like that so I'm sorry if it's not very realistic. I did my best. Let me know if you think it could be improved and I'll come back and add to it.

So far people are saying yes to lemons, and that Harry should be fifteen or sixteen when they have sex. I'm going to say right now that Tom has no problem having sex with her being underage so long as she says yes. I'd like to say that I don't think this is necessarily right, but I don't think murder is right either and that's not going to stop me from writing it in this fic. Tom's morals are... well he has very few and the ones he does have are rather loose.

As for custody: Sorry if you thought Tom would get it. That would just add a whole new layer to their relationship that I'm not ready to explore. It would make things hard for when people inevitably find out.

Also, there is a drawing of Harriet I did linked on my profile. Towards the bottom. Hank's photo is still there too.

Best,

Eliza


	16. A Serious Summer

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 16: A Serious Summer

Warning: Torture

-o-

"No! Let me go!" Harry screamed as woke up. She sat up so quickly she felt dizzy and knocked Hank off the bed. It wasn't the first time she'd awoken like so, but it was the first time she'd done so at home with Tom, though it was only her second night back from Hogwarts. She didn't have to wait long to find out if she woke him or not as he came bursting into her room with his wand held out. His eyes scanned the room and he placed his wand in the pocket of his pyjama pants when he realized there was no threat.

"What happened, dearest?" He asked as he walked over to sit on the edge of her bed. He lifted her chin so she was staring into his eyes. He gently stroked her hair with his free hand.

"Nightmare." She mumbled. "Don't worry about it."

"Tell me about it." He ordered, but Harry refused. He sighed and continued to stare into her eyes. Suddenly, he stood. Harry saw him look furious for a moment but he quickly schooled his features into a mask of concern. "You can tell me anything, you know."

"I know. I'd just rather deal with this myself." Harry told him honestly. What would he think of her? He'd never want her if he knew. He'd think her pathetic... weak... useless... He couldn't know.

Tom stared at her once more before he nodded in understanding. He walked over to her once more, kissed her on the cheek, and left Harry's room.

Harry blushed as she stared out the door. Not only had he kissed her on the cheek, but when he did she realized he hadn't been wearing a shirt. She closed her eyes and let thoughts of Tom consume her. Even when he wasn't there, he helped chase away unwanted memories.

-x-

As Tom closed her door a look of utmost fury graced his features. He was beyond angry that anyone would try to touch what was his. While he'd seen that Lockhart hadn't got very far, it was further than Tom was content to allow anyone but himself.

Tom walked back into his room and changed into plain black jeans, a black button up shirt and an open black robe. He put on his shoes and disappeared with a crack.

He reappeared outside a rather large house. It was painted a horrific shade of pink and was encased in complex wards cast by the ministry to keep him under house arrest. Tom pulled out his wand and got to work dismantling them. It was a delicate process. He had to first remove the owner's own wards and then the wards the ministry had placed to prevent the owner from leaving or using magic. The tricky part was removing them all without alerting the ministry. It took him probably a half hour to get rid of the ministry's wards but only minutes to dismantle the owner's.

Tom silently let himself into the gaudy house. The interior was no less horrific than the outside. He searched the main floor for any company before he made his way up the stairs and quickly found the master bedroom. He pushed the door open and cast a silencing ward. The man had no neighbours, but one couldn't be too careful.

"_Crucio_." Tom pointed his wand at the man in the bed. The man woke up and started shrieking in pain. Tom let the spell end after a few minutes.

"Who- Why are you doing this?" Lockhart blubbered. "You can't do this to me! You'll go to Azkaban for this!"

"I think not, scum." Tom sneered. "And I should think it's fairly obvious why. You touched what's mine, and now you have to pay."

Tom recast the curse and laughed at the man's screams and pleas for help.

"No one will help. There's no one else here. I made sure of that." Tom taunted. "But the cruciatus curse is a bit boring isn't it? What do you say we make things interesting, hm? Accio fingernails."

Lockhart screamed as his fingernails were pulled from his fingers. He continued to scream as Tom summoned his toenails next.

"I tire of your screams. Silencio."

Despite being silenced Lockhart continued to try and speak, but Tom didn't care. He cast the bone shattering hex at each of Lockhart's fingers before cutting them off with the severing charm. Usually it wasn't strong enough to cut through bone, but Tom had always been capable of pushing more power into spells than others could. Once the man's fingers were removed Tom repeated the processes on his toes.

When he finished with the man's toes he cast a spell to vanish the man's clothes. He looked at the man in disgust and quickly cast the castration curse. Once he was finished he went about shattering the bones in the man's limbs before severing them too. He cast several complex healing charms to make sure the man survived the loss of his limbs and didn't die from blood loss. When only the man's torso was remaining he stopped his torture briefly, only to cast the cruciatus curse on him once more.

While holding the man under the curse Tom absently looked out the window and saw the night sky was starting to recede.

"Looks like our time is up." Tom ended the cruciatus curse. "Avada Kedavra."

A green light shot out of his wand and hit Lockhart between the eyes. Tom nonchalantly exited the room as if he hadn't just tortured and killed a man. When he exited the house he tilted his head to the side in thought. Should he leave Lockhart to be found? Or should be burn the entire house down? He pondered this for a few moments before he decided.

"Fiendfyre." He hissed. He stood before the house as he watched it burn to ash. When there was nothing left he put out the flames with an equally illegal water spell. When the last of the flames died he turned and disappeared with a crack.

-x-

The next morning Harry slept in. When she woke up she walked to the kitchen and found Tom making lunch.

"Your letters are on the table." He said. "I've already sorted out the nasty ones."

"Why don't you just bin all of them?" Harry asked. "It's not like I really need to read people's false sympathy."

"Because some of them send you gift certificates, dearest." Tom reminded. "And those can be useful."

"I don't see how a dozen subscriptions to Witch Weekly can be useful." Harry snorted.

"Not those." Tom rolled his eyes. "The ones to Flourish and Blotts and the like."

Since the story broke that Harry and several other unknown girls (and maybe boys) were victims of sexual assault or attempted sexual assault Harry had been receiving large amounts of mail. A good portion was hate mail from fans of Lockhart who refused to believe he had done what he was accused of. The letters inside the envelope were often jinxed or hexed and Tom had taken to sorting through her mail for her. There were also a lot of sympathy letters, often including a gift of some sort. Harry and Tom had to bin the amount of flowers sent to her because there just wasn't room.

Harry went through the letters and sorted out the ones with gifts and the ones without. Then she sorted through the gits and put them into piles of useful and useless. She was rather pleased with the sneakoscope and candy but wasn't too interested in much of the rest. She sorted out the gift certificates and placed them with the others she had received. When she finished lunch was finally ready.

"Did you see the paper?" Tom asked her as he cut up some meat on his plate.

"No, why?" Harry asked. "Something interesting happen?"

"Yes, quite." Tom answered. He stood up and walked to the living room where he had left the newspaper. He grabbed it and handed it to Harry when he returned. She stared at the headline.

"LOCKHART HOME IN ASHES – FAMOUS AUTHOR PRESUMABLY DEAD"

Underneath it was a picture of an empty lot filled with nothing but ashes. The article went on to talk about how Lockhart had been under house arrest until his upcoming trial and how the ministry realised the wards had been tampered with so they sent someone out to check on the house. Apparently when they arrived they found nothing but ashes. Since Lockhart was unable to use magic or leave they assumed he died in the fire, his body completely destroyed by the blaze. They were unsure who did it and had no leads, but aurors were on the case.

"Oh Merlin..." Harry breathed. "I can't believe it."

"Believe it, dearest." Tom smirked. "I guess some fan of yours was terribly upset about what happened to you and delivered some vigilante justice."

"I wonder who did it..."

"Doesn't really matter, does it?"

"Well... I guess. I mean, I guess this means he can't deny that he did anything." Harry shrugged. She tried to seem unaffected but inside she was sad that now they'd never find out what other girls he hurt. She had to remind herself that with his death they at least got justice.

"You should invite your muggleborn friend over." Tom suggested. He knew Harry wouldn't talk to him about what happened, but he was fairly certain she would open up to her most empathetic friend.

"Hermione? Why?"

"Why not?" Tom countered.

"Because you still don't like muggleborns." Harry deadpanned.

"Perhaps, but she is tolerable." Tom shrugged. "Besides, wasn't she related to the Bones and Malfoy families? Both are rather prestigious."

"Alright. I'll go write her a letter after breakfast."

Harry indeed wrote Hermione asking her to come visit the day before her birthday. Hermione's positive reply arrived just hours later.

Harry spent the days before Friday the thirtieth mostly locked in her room. She mostly cuddled with Hank, which brought her a small measure of comfort. Hank was constantly giving her "kisses" as if she knew something was wrong with her owner. She would place her tiny paws on either side of Harry's neck and start licking her face. Harry thought it was adorable. Other than spending time with Hank she mostly read and did her homework. When Tom was home from work she would try to spend less time in her room so he didn't know something was off.

When Friday finally arrived Harry was slightly anxious. She hadn't talked to anyone about the incident since it happened and she wasn't sure she would be able to. Since Tom was working she had to go pick up Hermione from the Leaky Cauldron by herself. She didn't want to go anywhere alone, so she put Hank on her leash and walked down to the pub with her dog. When she arrived Hermione was already waiting. Harry waved to her friend and Hermione practically ran over to her.

"Harry!" she exclaimed. "It's so good to see you! How are you doing?"

"Er... Okay I suppose. I'd rather wait until we get to me and Tom's place before we really talk." Harry said. Hermione nodded and respected her wishes. She kept the topics of conversation light until they arrived at Harry and Tom's apartment on Actu Alley. When they entered Harry quickly led Hermione into her room and closed the door.

"Harry... what happened with Lockhart?" Hermione asked after several moments of silence.

For a moment Harry didn't speak and Hermione opened her mouth to apologize and tell her she didn't need to share if she wasn't comfortable, but stopped herself when finally Harry started to talk. She told Hermione about how she got detention with Lockhart and didn't think much of it since she'd had one with him before. She spoke of how she thought something was off with him, but didn't know what. She left out the part where she had planned to frame him since she knew Hermione wouldn't approve. Between sobs Harry talked about how disgusting she felt and how she wondered about the other people who he assaulted and obliviated. The whole time Hermione just let Harry cry on her shoulder and gave her reassurances that no, Tom would never think less of her or blame her for it and that it was over and wouldn't happen again.

Once Harry had gotten (almost) everything off her chest she felt lighter. It felt good to tell someone how the incident made her feel.

After the heavy conversation Hermione got Harry talking about school. This past year Hermione had placed first and Harry had fallen behind to second place. Neville Longbottom managed to hold on to third place and Pansy fell in the middle again. Harry was rather disappointed with herself, but Hermione pointed out that she was going through a lot when they did their exams. Harry smiled and let Hermione think that was comforting, but really it wasn't. Harry thought she shouldn't have let anything affect her performance. She shouldn't show weakness.

And that's how Harry felt. Weak. She thought she was strong the year before. She made it through all those obstacles and almost stole the philosopher's stone from Dumbledore. She was way ahead of her classmates and well versed in illegal magic. She had killed a man for Merlin's sake. But then one weak, fraud of a man made her feel so powerless. Sure, she managed to get away before he did any real damage, but the fact that he got as far as he did really irked Harry. While it was no further than Harry had planned to for the man to get under the imperius curse, it was totally different. If he were under the imperius then Harry would have been the one in complete control. Instead for a few life altering minutes Gilderoy Lockhart was the one with the power.

-x-

When Harry woke up the next morning on her birthday she smiled. She hadn't had any nightmares. She hoped that was a sign she would have a good day. She got dressed in a pretty lilac and white summer dress and spent an extra ten minutes on her hair to get it as neat as possible.

She exited her room and found Tom standing at the stove making a large breakfast to celebrate her birthday. He motioned her to sit down at the table and told her breakfast was almost ready. She went through her mail and sorted it while she waited. After what seemed like forever Tom placed a large plate full of eggs, hash browns and sausage in front of her. Harry dug in immediately to Tom's amusement. Instead of eating he simply sat and watched her with the slightest hint of a smirk on his face.

She seemed to be slightly more relaxed and Tom was glad his plan to get Harry to talk to the muggleborn worked out. He understood that Harry did not want to talk to him about it. She was under the impression he didn't know the truth and if that's what she wanted, he would pretend he was as ignorant as she thought him. He knew it was partly a matter of pride for the girl, and that was something he understood well. The other part of the reason was that she thought he'd be disgusted by her and never want her as a partner, which was the furthest thing from the truth. Tom was simply waiting for Harry to grow up before he made her his officially. It was something he had decided shortly after meeting the girl and seeing how a like they were, and no one would change his mind on the matter. He would have her, simple as that.

He was glad he no longer had much longer to wait. Harry was already thirteen and he just had to wait another year or two before he felt she was old enough. Of course, others would still think her too young for him since he was legally six years older, but he didn't care. In reality he was over fifty years older than the girl, so to him six years was nothing.

His train of thought was interrupted when Harry asked him what he had planned for the day.

"Whatever you want, dearest." He told her.

"Can we do the same thing as last year?" Harry asked eagerly.

"Of course. Just remind me to bring a book before we go clothes shopping."

Harry giggled.

They spent the rest of the day out and about. They first went to Flourish and Blotts and bought a huge stack of books. Some of them were books about spells and magical theory but most of them were fiction. When they were done there they went to Twillfit and Tatting's to buy some new robes. Harry tensed whenever the tailor touched her but managed to keep herself from outright flinching at the contact. She was greatly relieved when they were done.

Next they went to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour and Tom bought her a huge strawberry, fudge, and raspberry sundae. She managed to eat most of it, but in the end she had to have Tom help her finish the large desert. Once done eating they walked to the bank, exchanged their galleons for pounds and headed to the Leaky Cauldron where they exited into the muggle world.

They took a taxi to the store Harry had shopped at the year before. Harry hurried along for Tom's sake since she knew he was bored and as funny as him hexing muggles was, she knew it was best that he didn't get bored enough to do so.

When she was done there he took her home and cooked her a homemade meal. Harry decided she liked Tom's cooking more than she enjoyed eating out with him. There was just something special to her about it.

After dinner they played muggle card games and discussed his plans for the future. He was still working at Beatrice's Books but planned to quit fairly soon since he was paid rather well for his seat on the Wizengamot and he no longer needed the job to make allies.

So far his political career was going splendidly. He was well respected despite his young age and had managed to appeal to the more conservative purebloods as well as those who don't believe in blood purity. He still had his opponents, mainly Dumbledore and several of his supporters who were muggle lovers, but even they liked him as a person. He maintained the facade of a young, studious man who genuinely cared for their world and wanted to protect it from harm.

And just as planned Harry, and unwittingly Hermione, were helping the purebloods see that muggles could harm the magical world.

-x-

"Wake up." A deep voice said. Harry groaned and turned away from the voice. It was much too early to rise.

"It's ten 'o'clock and I need to speak with you."

Such an ungodly hour, she thought. Harry pulled her pillow over her head.

"This is no time for games, Harriet!" the voice snapped and ripped away her pillow. "Get up."

"Nooo!" she moaned and hid underneath the covers. "Comfy."

"If you don't get up you won't be for much longer." The voice sounded really annoyed, but Harry was too tired to care. "I'm warning you, Harriet. Get. Up."

Harry refused to budge. She heard footsteps and sighed in relief. She was almost back to sleep when she felt something cold and wet being poured onto her.

"Ah!" She shrieked and jumped out of bed. "Cold! Cold! Cold!"

She glared at Tom. "What was that for?"

"That was for not getting up when I asked you to, Harriet." Tom growled. Harry winced.

"What's so important I have to get up early on a Sunday?" she asked. Tom sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban." Said Tom.

"Who?" Harry asked. "And isn't that supposed to be impossible?"

"Nothing's impossible. And he's apparently my other self's right hand man. I asked around when I saw the paper. Apparently he betrayed your parent's location to Voldemort and later killed Peter Pettigrew and thirteen muggles."

"And he's escaped?" Harry asked rhetorically. "Why did you have to wake me up to tell me this?"

"Allegedly he was mumbling "she's at Hogwarts, she's at Hogwarts" in his sleep before he escaped. It's believed he wants to finish what my other self started."

"So he wants to kill me. Brilliant." Harry rolled her eyes. "Can I go back to sleep now?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I need to update the wards on the apartment and you can't be here for that." Tom explained.

"Why not?" Harry asked again.

"Because I said so." Tom told her. "I've talked to the Parkinsons. They've agreed to allow you to stay with them for a week while I work on the wards."

"A week?" Harry's face fell. She didn't want to be away from Tom for that long.

"Yes, dearest. A week."

And so Harry got dressed, packed up a bag, grabbed Hank, and floo'd to Parkinson Manor. The floo practically tossed her out on her arse when she was at the right location. She coughed on the ashes and stood up to brush soot off of herself. Upon hearing the commotion a house elf popped into the room.

"Ah, Mistress Harriet is here. Ruey will be telling Mistresses Emma and Pansy." The house elf said. "Wait right here."

The house elf, Ruey, disappeared with a pop leaving Harry no choice but to follow it's instructions. She took the time to make herself as presentable as possible without taking a bath and changing her soot stained dress.

"Harry!" Pansy squealed. "It's so good to see you! Even if only because of this terrible situation... I can't imagine how you must feel. Terrified, I should think."

"Terrified of what?" Harry asked dumbly.

"Of Sirius Black, you dolt!"

"Oh. Right. I haven't really processed it yet. I just want to go back to sleep. Tom kept me up late last night."

"Well, I'll show you to your room then." Pansy giggled. She doubted Harry realized how wrong what she had said could sound.

-x-

Harry spent the week at Parkinson Manor moping and worrying. Worrying because once she was properly awake she realized she had (another) mass murderer after her and moping because she missed Tom. Pansy laughed at her when she admitted she was acting so sullenly because she missed Tom and called her "love sick," which caused her face to mimic a tomato. In turn she teased Pansy about her crush on Draco. Harry was relieved to say that Draco had not sent her a birthday present and Pansy was relieved to hear it. The two girls were often found gossiping. Apparently Pansy's mum was friends with Mrs. Greengrass, who loved to talk about her daughters. Pansy learned a lot about their nemesis from eavesdropping on her mother and they spent hours giggling over Daphne's dramatics.

When the time came for Tom to pick her up and take her home Harry felt torn. While she missed Tom dreadfully, she would miss the Parkinsons as well, albeit to a lesser extent. Edgar and Emma had treated Harry like a second daughter and she enjoyed spending so much time with Pansy.

When Tom floo'd over she ran over to him and hugged him. She then turned to the Parkinsons and hugged each of them in turn and bid them farewell.

With a nod to the Parkinsons Tom gently grabbed Harry around the waist and they disappeared with a crack.

They reappeared at the Diagon Alley apparation point. Confused, Harry looked at Tom.

"I've placed anti-apparation wards around the apartment." Tom replied to her silent question. "Along with several other wards. Some rather nasty, if you aren't keyed in. I also cancelled the floo."

Harry nodded as they made their way through the alleys to their apartment. Harry felt a tickle as they passed through the doorway to their apartment and asked Tom about it. He explained that it was just the wards recognizing her.

While at home Harry read the books she got for her birthday and practiced magic under Tom's supervision. He rarely let her out of his sight when they weren't in their apartment and forbid her from answering the door unless he was home with her, not that anyone actually came to their door.

A week before the twentieth of August Tom received an invitation to the annual Malfoy summer ball. Harry had hoped to go, but Tom sent back a reply saying that he unfortunately couldn't make it. Other than that nothing of note happened for the rest of the summer.

The Daily Prophet kept up a steady stream of articles about Lockhart's mysterious death and Sirius Black's escape. She noticed Tom seemed eerily pleased when he read about the former, but didn't comment on it. She figured he was just happy the fraud was no longer a blight on the magical world. Harry didn't pay much attention to the paper. All the articles about Sirius Black stressed her out. She was a bit worried about going back to Hogwarts since it sounded like that was where Black was headed, but Tom assured her that Hogwarts was perfectly safe. And worse come to worse, she could always hide in the Chamber of Secrets.

-o-

AN: I hope the torture scene was okay. I mean, I've never tortured anyone and I'm not the most creatively sadistic person so... Yeah... I don't really believe in giving warnings but I figured people would bitch if I didn't.

Thank you all for your support. You guys rock. I'm sure I had more to say but I'm really tired so I forget it... If you have any questions about the chapter feel free to ask and I'll get back to you. I'm sorry I don't respond to all my reviews. If you ask a question that's not a spoiler or something I try to answer, but otherwise I feel my time is better spent writing. I figure you'd be happier with a new chapter than a pretty much contentless response.

Best,

Eliza


	17. Dementors&Boggarts&Hippogriffs, Oh My!

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 17: Dementors, Boggarts, and Hippogriffs, Oh My!

-o-

Harry walked down the train searching for her friends. She peered into each compartment but found that they were mostly full of other students. Unfortunately, she had arrived a bit late since Hank had decided she wanted to play hide in seek. It wasn't until Tom found the tiny dog hiding in his closet that they were able to leave.

Harry peered into one of the last compartments and saw something slightly out of the ordinary. A shaggy man with several scars sat in the window seat of the compartment. He was leaning against the window and sound asleep. Harry briefly wondered why he wasn't in the teacher's car but shrugged and moved on. She found her friends in the compartment across from the strange man's.

"You just had to pick one of the last compartments, huh?" she joked to Pansy and Hermione.

"It was one of the only ones free! At least we didn't end up in the compartment with that strange guy." Pansy said.

"Pansy!" Hermione hissed. "Be more respectful! That man was our new defence professor!"

"How do you know?" Harry asked her bushy haired friend.

"His brief case." Hermione explained. "It said "Professor R. J. Lupin" on it."

"Oh." Pansy said. "Well, he looked more like a peasant than a professor."

"Pansy!" Hermione hissed again.

"What?" Pansy shrugged. "It's true!"

"That doesn't mean you have to say it!" Hermione scolded.

"Alright, alright." Pansy gave in. "Sorry."

"Is that a cat?" Harry asked to change the topic. Hermione nodded and explained that his name was Crookshanks and she had bought him in Diagon Alley over the summer since she wanted a pet. Initially she'd wanted an owl, but she saw Crookshanks and fallen in love.

The rest of the ride was spent catching up and joking around. When the sweets trolley came by Harry splurged while Hermione scolded her about rotting her teeth and Pansy taunted her about getting fat. Harry retorted that she'd simply brush her teeth before bed and that unlike Pansy, she's actually physically active. Pansy rolled her eyes at that.

"Sitting on a broom is very physically active." Pansy snarked. Harry stuck out her tongue and changed the subject.

After awhile the train started to slow down. Pansy peered out the window to see if they were at Hogsmeade station already.

"We can't be there already," Hermione said. "It's only been a few hours."

"Doesn't look like we're there." Pansy agreed. "Though it's hard to tell through the rain and darkness."

The lights went out.

"Maybe we should ask that professor what's going on...?" Pansy said nervously.

"Oh, now you talk about him respectfully." Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Not the time." Harry hissed. "I agree with Pansy."

The three girls stood up and opened their compartment. They walked into the professor's compartment and found that Neville Longbottom and Ron Weasley had joined him.

"What are you lot doing here?"Neville asked.

"We wanted to ask the professor if he knew what was going on." Hermione sniffed. She wasn't fond of the two boys.

"He's asleep, how would he know?" Ron said.

"Maybe he was informed beforehand!" Hermione suggested as she crossed her arms defensively.

"We shouldn't wake him, it looks like he doesn't get much sleep as it is." Neville said.

"That may be, but when things like this happens it's his job to—"

Suddenly the air turned chilly and they all fell silent. Frost began to creep up on the windows in the compartment and the occupants felt a sense of dread and unhappiness. Memories started to fill her mind. She couldn't help but think about the incident with Lockhart, her years with the Dursley's...

"What in the world..." Hermione whispered.

"Oh no!" Pansy bit her lip. "My dad told me about something like this. When he went to Azkaban to visit a friend..."

"You don't mean..." Neville looked sick.

"What do you—" Ron began but stopped when a new voice joined the conversation.

"Quiet." Lupin ordered.

A hooded figure could be seen outside the compartment. They saw it check the compartment Harry and her friends had been in just minutes ago and then turn towards the one they now occupied. It opened the door and moved its head around before facing Harry. It started to move towards her and—

A flash of silver was the last thing Harry saw before she heard a woman scream and knew no more.

-x-

When Harry came to she was in the hospital wing. She sat up groggily and looked around. She still felt cold and horrible, like she would never be happy again. As if someone told her Harry had woken up, Madam Pomfrey came bustling out of her office with a chocolate bar in hand.

"Here, eat this." The older woman ordered. Harry took the chocolate and began to eat it. She felt warmth spread through her as she ate and her mood drastically improved.

"Nasty business, dementors." Madam Pomfrey murmured as she cast a few spells to see how Harry was doing.

"I'm sorry, but what's a dementor again?" Harry asked. She vaguely remembered Tom talking about them but what they were, other than guards of the wizarding prison, eluded her.

"Nasty, dark creatures. They feed upon Human happiness and cause depression and despair to anyone near them. They guard the prison, and since the escape of Sirius Black they will be guarding the school, too." Pomfrey explained.

"What!?" Harry exclaimed. "You mean those things will be here, too?"

"Yes, though only at the entrances and exits, thankfully. They will also be patrolling the village, Hogsmeade."

Harry felt sick to her stomach at that pronouncement.

After she ate the dinner a house elf brought her, Harry made her way to the Slytherin third year girl's dorm. When she entered Pansy immediately pounced on her.

"Oh Merlin, Harry!" she cried. "I was so worried. Are you okay? What did Madam Pomfrey say?"

"I'm fine. Madam Pomfrey just had me eat some chocolate and dinner and let me go." Harry assured her.

"Poor ittle bitty baby Potter." Daphne cut in, in a mocking tone. She ignored Pansy's moan of "can't you mind your own business" and continued to mock Harry for passing out on the train. "Scared of the dementors, Potter? I know they're horrible, but passing out, really?"

Harry rolled her eyes and grabbed her pyjamas, a quill and ink, and her lilac diary from her trunk. She bid Pansy goodnight before she climbed into bed and pulled the hangings closed. She changed into her pyjamas and opened her diary.

_Tom, _she wrote. _How do you fight off dementors?_

_Why? _

_Well, they came to inspect the train, and I ended up passing out. _

_I see. The patronus charm is the only spell that has any real affect on them. It is incredibly difficult to cast. Most adult wizards can't cast it._

_But you can, right? And you can teach me? _Harry half asked, half pleaded.

_I'm afraid not. I never had the need to learn the charm._

"Fuck." Harry cursed aloud before she asked Tom what he suggested she do.

_I'd ask Professor Snape. He seems to have an odd protective streak when it comes to you. He is a powerful wizard, so he likely can cast it. If not, ask the new defence teacher. Perhaps this year's isn't pathetic._

_I'll ask Professor Snape. Thanks, Tom._

_Anything else, dearest?_

_No, I'm going to go to bed now. Goodnight._

_Goodnight, Harriet._

Harry closed the journal and put away her ink and quill. She fell into a fitful sleep where she dreamed of a beautiful woman with dark red hair and familiar green eyes screaming.

-x-

The first class Harry had the next morning was arithmancy. She made it to the class and pulled out her textbook. Within minutes she was joined by Hermione. The two of them chatted quietly while they waited for class to begin.

When class finally did begin Harry was a bit disappointed. It seemed that they would be doing some basic and not so basic plain old math before they really began to study arithmancy. It was disappointing because Harry had already learned most of this stuff while she had studied muggle math. Her and Hermione whizzed through the worksheets they were given and went to ask the professor what they should do afterwards. The professor was surprised to see that the two girls were already done with half the class still remaining and gave them some handouts about the basic properties of numbers to study and informed them she'd have something prepared for the next class since the worksheets were supposed to last for several classes.

Harry was surprised to learn that, but wasn't too shocked when she thought about it. She skipped most of the instructional papers and went right into the practice ones. She supposed it might take awhile to learn everything, but once you knew it was easy to accomplish.

While her classmates learned what Harry now considered basic math, her and Hermione read up on the properties of numbers. She learned that zero denoted potential, birth and possibility. Since it's a circle it represents eternity and infinity, though because of its meaning it could also mean nothingness. One represented beginnings and purity, and symbolized identity, equality and peace. Two symbolized partnerships, romance and communication while at the same time symbolizing diversity, inequality and division.

The number three really called to Harry. The trinity is seen in the family (mother, father, child) and the cycle of life (life, death, rebirth). Something that occurs three times is seen as significant and it represented creativity, magic and intuition. There was just something about the number that seemed perfect to her. She read further that it was the second most powerful number after seven. It seemed oddly symbolic that she was drawn to the number three and Tom was drawn to seven. As if to say she was more powerful than all but Tom. She smiled at the idea.

At the end of the class Harry bid goodbye to Hermione and made her way to the charm's classroom. She rejoined Pansy who complained about divination and how the teacher seemed to be an utter quack.

"I doubt I'll learn anything useful." The blonde girl told her. Harry nodded and resisted the urge to say "I told you so."

Class begun shortly thereafter. Professor Flitwick started lecturing them on the theory behind cheering charms and paired them into partners to practice the charm once he was done. Harry was partnered with Pansy and managed to cast the charm on her third try. Pansy smiled like an idiot for the rest of the period. Harry privately thought it was a good thing to be teaching them with the dementors lingering around, though she doubted it would do much good.

After charms Harry and Pansy walked down to their care of magical creatures class. She and Pansy were both horrified to see Hagrid was teaching. The rest of the Slytherins seemed to agree, while the Gryffindors seemed happy to have the half-giant as a professor. Probably because of his dislike of Slytherins, Harry figured. She found it hard to believe anyone could like the idiot.

She wondered what Dumbledore was thinking letting the man teach a class. Sure, he probably knew a lot about magical creatures since he was obsessed with them, but Harry swore that a man who tried to keep both a pet acromantula and a pet dragon teaching this class was a bad idea. He had no sense of safety, personal or otherwise.

Hagrid, who Harry refused to call professor, led the class to a paddock full of strange creatures that resembled a bird-horse hybrid. He identified them as hippogriffs and had Neville demonstrate how to properly approach them. After Neville flew on the Hippogriff for a bit Hagrid set the rest of the students to approach the hippogriffs. Harry, Hermione and Pansy approached one with no problem, though Draco insulted one and nearly got injured. He would have if Neville hadn't been nearby and pulled him out of the way. Harry sighed at Draco's behaviour. She really wondered what Pansy saw in him sometimes.

Draco marched over to Harry and her friends with a scowl on his face.

"Can't believe that oaf is a professor." He snorted in disgust. "Longbottom had to go and ruin my plan to get the idiot in trouble, too."

"Right. That's what you were doing." Harry commented dryly.

"It was!" Draco protested. "I'm not stupid enough to let a beast attack me for no reason."

"Didn't say you were." Harry blinked innocently. Pansy elbowed her in the ribs and turned the conversation towards her. Instead of going back to conversing with Harry, like the three girls thought he would, he instead remained engaged in conversation with Pansy.

Maybe he was getting over Harry. Finally.

"Hey, Harry. Pansy said you told her Hagrid is a half-giant, is that true?"

Or maybe not.

-x-

A few days later it was finally time for the most anticipated class of the year. The older Slytherins who had defence already informed the other students that while the man looked like he got on the bad end of a werewolf, he was a good teacher and knew his stuff. Of course, none of them would admit it outside of the common room. Hermione, who had also had the class already, spoke of how the third years had faced a boggart, though she wasn't sure if the other classes would get to or not since they destroyed the one Professor Lupin had found.

Harry thought that making students face a boggart in front of everyone was rather invasive. She didn't want everyone to know what she feared most. What if it was something very personal? Like Tom leaving her? Or what if it was something revealing? Like Tom becoming just like his other self? Harry hoped there wasn't a boggart for her lesson.

She entered the classroom and took a seat towards the middle of the class. After the rest of the students filtered in Lupin stood up from his position at his own desk.

"Good afternoon, class." He greeted warmly. It seemed he had little to no prejudice against Slytherins, which was a relief. That, or he was just good at hiding it. "Put your books away and grab your wands. Today is a practical lesson. We're going to be taking things outside of the classroom."

A low murmur fell over the classroom as the students stood and followed the man into his office.

"Sorry it's rather cramped, but we're lucky enough that we're able to have a practical lesson today." Lupin apologized. The cabinet in the corner of the room wobbled.

"There's a boggart in there, isn't there?" Harry asked.

"Ah yes! Ten points to Slytherin for knowing the signs of a boggart." Lupin grinned. "As Harry said, there's a boggart in this cabinet. Who can tell me how to combat a boggart."

Pansy, who had been briefed on this by Hermione, raised her hand and answered when called upon. After covering how to take care of a boggart Lupin went over the wand movement and pronunciation of the spell.

"Are you ready? Very well then, Mr. Crabbe..."He opened the door to the cabinet and unleashed the boggart.

Crabbe, who was at the front of the class paled and raised his wand. The boggart focused on him and turned into a manticore.

"Ri-Riddikulus!" he shouted and with a crack the manticore's tail became that of a rabbit. It looked slightly ridiculous and the class laughed nervously.

Next up was Goyle. The boggart turned into a large green snake, and once Goyle successfully cast the spell, a small one with pink and purple polkadots.

On and on it went. Some were more exciting than others, and some were rather personal. For example, Draco feared disappointing his father. Pansy feared being unloveable and Daphne was scared no one would ever love her. The three did however manage to make their boggarts silly and conquer them.

Finally, it was Harry's turn. Lupin looked conflicted, like he wanted to interfere, but upon seeing Harry's determined face he let her face it. The boggart turned to her and transformed into a floating, hooded black figure. Harry felt her blood run cold. She paused for a moment, but forced herself to think of how to make a dementor funny.

"Riddikulus!" She called as she aimed her wand at the boggart-dementor. With a crack the dementor turned pink and started radiating happiness. The whole class burst into laughter and the boggart finally was vanquished.

Harry sighed. While relieved that her boggart was nothing personal, she hadn't actually had any clue what it would be beforehand. When it turned into a dementor she had nearly been unable to face it, and wouldn't that have been humiliating? She would have been the only one in the class who couldn't face her fear, though in her defence she was likely the only one who's fear caused one difficulty in thinking happy thoughts.

Harry sighed. She did it and that's what mattered.

"Now class, please don't bully each other of their fears. You all were very brave to face them, and no matter how insignificant you feel someone's fear is, it is very significant to them." Lupin called right before the end of class. "Before I forget, fifty-five points to Slytherin for facing the boggart. Five for each of you."

The Slytherins grinned. This would help them catch up to Gryffindor in points. Harry had a feeling the reason Gryffindor was up so far though was because of when they faced the boggart, though. She hoped he didn't find a boggart for the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws.

-x-

The rest of September passed quickly. After the second week quidditch practice started up again. Marcus had returned to repeat several of his classes and thus was still captain of the Slytherin team.

"I got mostly E's and an A in most of my classes, but I was taking so many that I failed transfiguration, ancient runes and arithmancy. With just three classes this year should be a breeze." He explained to Harry and Hermione one day in the library. The grading method had confused them, as they were given percentage marks in their classes, so Marcus had to explain the OWL and NEWT grading system to them.

While Marcus had returned for another year, Ares Merritt and Jason Farley had graduated, so they had two spots open on the team, a chaser and a beater. Tryouts were rather boring for Harry. As a member of the team she was expected to be there, but it was quite boring watching people fail. When it was finally over they had chosen Draco Malfoy as the chaser and a fifth year named George Gibson as the beater. He was a large boy, much like the others, thus he was very strong and capable of taking hits. He also had a decent broom.

With Draco joining the team, Harry would no longer be able to borrow his Nimbus 2001. Draco apologized, but Harry didn't really mind. She much preferred her Cleansweep 7 for sentimental reasons. Besides, the year before she had proved she didn't need the best broom to be the best seeker.

Harry was very pleased with the additions to the quidditch team in the end. While Gibson wasn't terribly influential, Draco was, and he would be spending more time around Harry and the rest of the quidditch team who'd already begun learning about the dangers of muggles. Draco would no doubt over hear them discussing muggles at some point and become curious himself. And once he was informed, he would go running to daddy. And Lucius had the minister in his pocket, so it was perfect.

She had one such opportunity in the middle of October. It was a week and a half before the first Hogsmeade visit of the year and Harry, the girls, and the entire quidditch team were gathered in a back corner of the library.

The first few minutes were spent by Hermione complaining about Ronald Weasley and his rat before they got to work. Things progressed smoothly with Harry and Hermione occasionally asking the older students for help on a topic they didn't understand completely until they pulled out their arithmancy.

"Wait." Draco said. "When did we get that arithmancy assignment?"

"Uh, _we_, as in Hermione and I, got it yesterday. You didn't get it yet." Harry answered.

"Well why not?" Draco demanded indignantly.

"You should get it sometime next month." Hermione said absently. "Harry and I are just ahead in the class since we're keeping up with the muggle maths curriculum."

"What do muggles have to do with arithmancy?"

"Math is universal in muggles and magicals." Harry explained. "And arithmancy is mostly math. So we learned a lot of what you spent the first few weeks on back in first and second year."

"Oh. So Professor Vector let you get ahead?" he asked.

"Yes. He's given us some non-curriculum work too, so we don't get too far ahead." Hermione added.

"I see."

"Why are you studying muggle subjects in the first place?" George asked.

"Because muggle math, chemistry and physics are used to explain the way the universe works and is made up. For the most part they are fairly accurate, they're just missing information and laws that magic contributes to the subjects. Advanced magical theory is based on those subjects." Harry explained patiently.

"Really?" George asked doubtfully.

"Really. We don't really learn that stuff at Hogwarts though."

"How do you know all this?" George narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"Tom."

"Riddle? You mean he believes all that mumbo jumbo about muggles and magical theory?"

"He doesn't believe it." Harry glared. "He _accepts _it. Unlike you, obviously. You're too stuck up and ignorant to."

George stood up. "Why I ought to..."

"Leave her alone, Gibson!" Marcus, Gabriel, and Adrian growled in unison.

"She's right." Marcus added. "I compared some advanced theoretical texts from my library with muggle textbooks and saw that a lot of it was the same."

"Whatever." George muttered. "You lot and your talks about muggles. Like they're really that dangerous."

"They are." Harry sneered. "Which is why we need to devise ways to protect ourselves and separate from them as much as possible. Even if you don't believe they are dangerous, you can't say you don't agree with separating from them."

"We should just kill them all, like dad says." George sneered. "So called "problem" solved."

"Right. Killing billions of people is totally possible." Hermione rolled her eyes. "Besides, where do you think all your food comes from? Most farmers are muggles."

Hermione wasn't really all too sure how she felt about muggles. She loved her parents, but after the conversation they had after she visited Tom and Harry for the first time really opened her eyes. Her parents were good people and they loved her, but magic still scared them. If they didn't love her, would they fear her too? What would their fear drive them to do. She couldn't say she had good experiences with other muggles either. Her teachers in primary school had been polite but distant and didn't do anything about the bullying the other children did. Said children teased her about any and everything. They called her Hideous Hermione, Bushy Beaver and more.

Intellectually she could understand that if muggles wanted to they could hurt witches and wizards easily. And that their technology could make it difficult for them to hide. But what she didn't know and had trouble deciding was if muggles would use their weapons against witches and wizards.

In the end Hermione figured that separation from muggles was probably best and told Harry so. Harry privately wondered if she realized what that would mean for muggleborns.

-o-

AN: sorry it's so late! I was going to write more for this but I hit writer's block after the last scene. I figure it'll be easier if I start a new chapter. I still have about half of what I'd planned for this chapter to write, so you get a nice, long chapter next time or an extra chapter, lol. Sorry. I'm thinking two chapters might be a bit short so this might help it if I slide things over.

I love you guys!

Also, the 100 review celebratory oneshot is out. It's short, but it's on my profile and called "Pottered." I will occasionally add chapters to it. It's mostly missing scenes and such. The first scene is centered around Hermione and her parents during winter break first year.

Thanks for the phenomenal support!

Eliza


	18. Sirius Attack

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 18: Sirius Attack

-o-

"Cockroach clusters? Acid pops?" Hermione asked aghast. "What sort of crazy are wizards?"

"The best kind!" Harry said while sucking on a blood pop Tom had bought her. She loved the sweet, metallic taste of them. Hermione gave her a disgusted look. Pansy just laughed.

The three girls and Tom were in Hogsmeade village and had just left Honeydukes and were making their way towards the Shrieking Shack. Tom had joined the girls shortly after they arrived in the village. It had been his condition to allowing Harriet to come to Hogsmeade. Though he wasn't her guardian officially, the Parkinsons tended to defer to him when it came to Harriet, and he made sure they only signed the form once Harriet had agreed to his conditions. Not that he minded. He was quite pleased to be able to see her during the school term.

"The shrieking shack is relatively new." Tom told the girls. "It wasn't around when my grandfather was at school in the forties."

"Really?" Hermione asked curiously. "But it's one of the most haunted locations in the United Kingdom!"

"They may say that, but I did some research. The only time that there was ever really any activity was during the seventies. Ever since it has been quiet." Tom shook his head. "That said, while people heard noises coming from the shack, no one ever saw any ghosts there. Hogwarts itself is more haunted."

"That's rather disappointing." Harry pouted. Tom ruffled her hair with a smirk.

"Speaking of ghosts... How is the Bloody Baron?" Tom asked. He had been rather fond of the ghost, though he was careful not to imply he knew him first hand in front of Harry's friends.

"Oh, er. Well, never really paid him much mind." Harry admitted. "I'll have to seek him out when we get back to the school."

"Do that. _Tell him I say hello._" Tom hissed the last part in parseltongue.

"_Got it_." Harry slipped into parseltongue without a thought. "_Anything else_?"

"_No, dearest._"

"Urgh." Pansy made a face. "That's slightly creepy. Cool, but creepy."

"And rude." Hermione said snidely. "Speaking a language others can't understand in front of them is _very rude_."

"Sorry, Hermione." Harry apologized half-heartedly.

"Apology accepted." She sniffed and lifted her chin. After a moment she broke out into giggles.

"Come on, let's go get a butterbeer from the Three Broomsitcks." Pansy said.

-x-

After an enjoyable day in Hogsmeade with her friends and Tom Harry disappeared into her dorm to "mourn her parents." Since she used that as an excuse in first year to explain her absence at the Halloween feast, she had to keep it up. It was the perfect time too, she learned from Tom, as it was Samhain which was the night to honour ancestors.

She did genuinely mourn her parents, but she did not spend the whole evening on it. She missed them, yes. But she didn't know what they would think of her and she pondered that more than anything. Would they hate her for being in Slytherin? They were Gryffindors, right? Her mom was friends with a Slytherin in her early years at Hogwarts, but her opinion could have changed. And besides her house, what would they think of her crushing on a younger version of the man who killed them? What would they think about her stance on magic? They fought on the side of the war that thought dark magic existed and was evil. She hated muggles and they were likely muggle lovers.

Harry couldn't help but feel like she was everything her parents stood against. Would they still love her for it? She didn't know, and it was not like there was anyone she could ask. Any friends of her parents likely held the same beliefs and would be horrified that their friend's daughter was "dark." Not that she knew of any of their friends except for Professor Snape, but in the end it sounded like her mum had let Snape go because he was walking down a path similar to hers.

She wondered who she would be if she were raised by her parents. She would have had a happy childhood, no doubt. Her parents had loved her enough to die for her; of course they would have been good parents. They probably would have passed on their beliefs about magic and muggles and Slytherin to her and she'd be a perfect little "light" witch. She probably would never have met Tom. And to tell the truth, she would choose Tom over her parents any day. Maybe it was because he was there for while they weren't. Maybe it was because she was so attached to him but never had the chance to form an attachment to her parents. Whatever the reason, Harry was not about to lie to herself. Tom was the most important person in her life, simple as that.

She must have drifted off to sleep while she was thinking because the next thing she knew Pansy was shaking her awake.

"What?" she asked groggily. "'M sleepin'."

"Harry! We have to go to the Great Hall!"

"What?" Harry bolted to her feet. "Why? What happened?"

"I don't know. Nobody does. Hermione might know more." Pansy said.

"Why would she know more?" Harry asked as she grabbed her glasses and shoved them on her face.

"I don't know. But she knows everything, doesn't she?"Pansy explained as they walked to the Great Hall with all the other Slytherins

When they finally arrived at the Great Hall they saw the Gryffindors were already there. The Headmaster gave some speech about searching the castle and everyone spending the night in the Great Hall. He waved his wand and the tables flew to the wall and with another the floor was covered with hundreds of purple sleeping bags. Harry and Pansy grabbed one and scanned the room for their friend. Hermione saw them first and they only noticed her once the bushy haired girl was nearing them.

"Hermione!" Harry exclaimed. "Do you know what happened?"

"The Fat Lady was attacked by Sirius Black. She's the portrait that guards the Gryffindor common room—don't tell anyone I told you. Apparently he wanted in and when she wouldn't let him he cut her right up with a knife." Hermione informed them. "She was very badly damaged."

"Black was in the castle!" Harry hissed in shock. Pansy just stared at Hermione wide eyed.

"How did he even get in?" Hermione wondered. "Hogwarts is supposed to be the safest place in the United Kingdom, if not all of Europe."

"Yeah well, Azkaban was supposed to be inescapable." Harry pointed out. "And he broke out of there no problem."

"I can't believe he attacked Gryffindor." Pansy said.

"I wonder why?" Harry mused. "Why he would attack Gryffindor when I'm a Slytherin, I mean."

"Gryffindors are saying he must have thought you were a Gryffindor, since your parents were, and didn't realize it was Halloween—sorry, Samhain— and almost everyone would be at the feast." Hermione winced. If Harry had been a Gryffindor she would have been in the Gryffindor Tower since she didn't go to the feast.

"But it's been all over the Daily Prophet since my first year that I'm a Slytherin. He must have had a chance to read a paper since he escaped. I mean, I would have read one so I knew what was going on, what was being said about me. It doesn't make sense." Harry protested.

"I know. I'm not sure I agree with that explanation. People say he's probably mad from Azkaban and that's why, but he can't have been that mad if he managed to escape." Hermione said.

Pansy contributed that she'd written her father and he said when he'd been at Azkaban and passed Black's cell he didn't seem all that mad compared to the other inmates. Black had even sneered at him.

"Alright, get to bed! It's light's out, everyone." Percy Weasley, the head boy called.

The three girls found a space near the wall and put down their sleeping bags. The Slytherin quidditch team minus George Gibson joined them and formed a semi circle around the three girls as if to protect them from Black.

Teachers took turns patrolling the Great Hall and the rest of the castle that night. Harry overheard a conversation that Professor Snape had with Dumbledore. Apparently Snape thought there was someone in the castle who was helping Black. She had a feeling he meant Lupin. The man, while a great teacher, did seem to be hiding something. Not to mention he was new and showed up the year Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban. It could be a coincidence— someone had to teach defence, after all. But Harry wasn't so sure.

-x-

The next few dreary, stormy days were filled with nothing but Talk of Sirius Black. Harry was getting sick of it. They had no answers and people were getting ridiculous. One girl insisted that Black could turn into a flowering shrub. Harry laughed loudly when she heard that one. She got a lot of strange looks, but not as many as the girl who suggested it.

Before the next scheduled quidditch practice Professor Snape pulled Harry aside. His usual scowl was absent from his face and he looked almost concerned once they were in the privacy of his office.

"I'm not sure if you're aware, Potter, but Black is—"

"After me. I know." Harry said dryly.

"Good. Then you understand why you are no longer permitted to practice quidditch." Snape said calmly.

"What!" Harry exploded. "Professor, no! You can't do this! The team needs me! I'm the seeker! Our first match is Saturday! If I'm not prepared we could lose to the Gryffindors! Besides, the team will protect me! They always do."

"Hm..." Professor Snape stared at her. While he didn't want to lose the cup to McGonagall, he certainly did not want the girl to be hurt. "Very well. You may attend practice, but I shall be there to supervise."

"Thank you Professor! Thank you so much! I could hug you!" Harry grinned.

"Please don't." Snape sneered and directed her from his office. It wasn't until a half hour later that she realized she'd missed the perfect opportunity to ask for patronus lessons.

-x-

The weather worsened as the week progressed. The Slytherins didn't practice as much as they'd have liked since Professor Snape refused to stay out in the windy, rainy weather for more than an hour and a half.

The day before the match Harry and Pansy found Professor Snape teaching defence class. When asked where Professor Lupin was he informed them that the man was sick. He then proceeded to lecture the class about werewolves even though they weren't set to learn about them until several weeks down the road. No one protested though. He was their head of house, if he was covering this now, they trusted he had a reason. Nor did they protest when he subtly bad mouthed Lupin. He also assigned the class an essay on ways to recognize and kill werewolves to be handed in to him Monday morning. The class held back a groan.

"I wonder what he has against Lupin." Harry said to Pansy after class. His dislike and distrust of the defence professor was strengthening her belief that Lupin was helping Black into the castle.

"I don't know. He hates all defence teachers." Pansy shrugged. She didn't really care.

"Yeah, but he seems to really have it out for Lupin." Harry pointed out. Pansy nodded and conceded the point.

The rest of the day passed quickly. That night Harry had trouble getting to sleep. While they had practiced in the horrid weather, she was still worried about playing in it. She only fell into a fitful sleep some time after midnight.

Harry woke to a crack of thunder the next morning. She cast tempus and saw it was half past seven. She groaned as she rolled out of bed. She forwent a shower as she knew she'd need one after the match. Instead she washed her face and put her hair into a braid so that the wind outside didn't tangle it beyond brushing.

She took Slytherin's passage to the Great Hall and ate a large bowl of porridge for breakfast. She was joined by her teammates shortly before she finished and spent the time before the game chatting with them.

Just before the game the seven of them made way to the change rooms. Harry quickly changed into her green and silver quidditch robes and charmed her glasses to repel water. As they walked out to the pitch the strong wind almost caused Harry to fall over. She wondered if she would be blown away once she mounted her broom. Ginny Weasley of the Gryffindor team seemed to be having the same problem.

The captains shook hands very briefly this time. They both wanted to get their hands back inside their sleeves for warmth. Madam Hooch told them to mount their brooms and then blew the whistle to signal the beginning of the game. At the shrill sound Harry pushed off the ground in unison with her teammates.

She rose fast and squinted through the rain to look for the snitch. She found that she had to adjust her direction on the broom because of the unrelenting wind blowing her off course. She gritted her teeth and squinted into the rain to search for the snitch. Though her glasses repelled water the mist still made it difficult to see very far away. She glanced at the rest of the players and found Weasley seemed to be having the same problems.

As lightning illuminated the sky she checked the score. They were thirty points up, but she knew she had to catch the snitch soon. Her teammates were having all the same troubles as her and more. She could not let them down.

Harry looked for the snitch in every direction but didn't see it. When she looked at the stands she saw the silhouette of a large shaggy black dog illuminated by the lightning. It was seated at the topmost, empty row of seats. She stared for a few minutes and it raised a paw as if to greet her. She shook her head to clear her thoughts.

Harry continued to circle the pitch. She watched her teammates score several times and saw the Gryffindors score a couple times too. She kept one eye out for the snitch and one eye on Ginny Weasley. Then something strange happened.

Silence fell across the stadium. A familiar coldness crept into the air and Harry looked below. A hundred or so dementors were taking over the pitch. Their hidden faces pointed up at Harry, as if she were their target.

Her ears began to ring and she heard the screaming again.

"_Not Harry! Please, not Harriet, not Harriet!"_

"_Stand aside, silly girl... stand aside or die."_

"_No, please! No! Take me instead, not Harry! Kill me instead—"_

Harry fell cold and all she could see was black. She wasn't sure but she thought she might be falling...

"_Have mercy! Please! Not Harriet!"_

Harry knew no more.

-x-

When Harry woke up the first thing to cross her mind was the quidditch game.

"What happened!? Who won?" she blurted before she could even see. Someone passed her, her round glasses and she shoved them on her face. She blinked a few times and saw her bed was surrounded by her friends and teammates.

"We lost." Marcus said bitterly. "After you passed out the Hooch called a time out so the professors could get rid of the dementors."

"They shot these silver animals out of their wands!" Draco added. "It was pretty cool. I don't know what charm it was."

"The patronus charm." Harry informed Draco. "Very difficult, most adults can't do it. Did Professor Snape cast one?"

"Yes, he did. A dear, I think." Marcus told her. "Anyways..." He glared at Draco for interrupting. "After the dementors were gone Hooch restarted the game. We had Draco fill in as seeker for you, but Weasley managed to get the snitch first."

"Damn. I'm sorry guys." Harry winced. She couldn't believe they lost. Their first lost since she joined the team. "What was the end score?"

"One-fifty to two-thirty." Gabriel said. "We didn't get annihilated at least."

"And it wasn't your fault." Marcus interjected. "It was the dementors. They're horrible. I don't know why you react so strongly though."

"I'll ask someone about that." Harry said vaguely. She had been putting off asking Snape for dementor help but now it seemed she had no choice.

"What about my broom? What happened to it after I fell?" Harry asked to fill the silence that had descended upon the infirmary.

"Well..." Marcus muttered while avoiding her gaze. "It uh... It flew into the Whomping Willow."

A look of complete devastation crossed Harry's face before she broke out into tears.

"Er... there, there. You can always get a new one." Draco consoled.

"But I loved that broom!" Harry wailed. It had been with her since first year. It was the first broom she ever owned and the first one she had ever seen had been the same model.

Her teammates spent the next few minutes calming her down. Once she did, they made some light conversation.

Not much later Madam Pomfrey came bustling out of her office to check on Harry and kicked everyone else out of the hospital wing. She fed Harry some chocolate and told her she appeared to be fine. Harry was released some minutes later.

She immediately headed for Professor Snape's office. When she arrived she knocked on the door and opened it when prompted.

"Miss Potter." Snape scowled. "What can I do for you?"

"Please sir, teach me the patronus charm." She said with a slightly shaky voice.

"The patronus charm." The man laced his hands together and rested his chin on them. "A very difficult spell, Potter. I doubt you are capable of casting it."

"Please sir! I know I can. I need to learn this. You saw what happens when dementors get near me!" Harry begged.

"Why come to me?" Snape asked while he stared at her intently.

"Tom never learned it, so he can't help me. And I don't trust the defence professor." Harry bit her lip.

"Oh?" Snape said. He seemed more interested after her last comment. "And why don't you trust him?"

"I, well... Last night I started research for the essay on werewolves you assigned. He met several of the criteria." She didn't want to admit that Snape was the reason she didn't trust the man mostly. She didn't know what she thought about werewolves. She would have to ask Tom for his opinion later.

"I see my essay did its intended purpose for at least one student." Snape smirked. "Very well. I will attempt to teach you the charm. Comes to my office tomorrow evening at six."

"Thank you professor!" Harry beamed at him. "You won't regret this!"

"I think I already do..." Snape muttered after Harry left his office.

-x-

"The incantation is expecto patronum." Snape told Harry. It was Sunday evening and they were in his office for their first patronus lesson. "Waving your wand like an idiot and shouting the incantation will not produce the spell, however. You need to be thinking about a happy memory to fuel the spell."

Harry nodded. "Expecto patronum... expect patronum..." she practiced pronouncing the incantation until Snape told her she had it.

"Now think of a happy memory. It can't be a regular memory, it has to be something very special, the happiest you have ever been." Snape lectured. "Using a regular memory may help you produce mist, but that will hardly do you any good against a dementor. That said, casting the spell around a dementor will be more difficult."

"Yes, sir." Harry said. It took her only a moment to think of her happiest memory—the day Tom got a body.

"Now try it."

"Expecto patronum!" Harry said forcefully. A small, silver mist came out of the tip of her wand. She cursed and tried again. The second time there was slightly more mist, but it was nowhere near corporeal.

"An admirable first attempt." Snape admitted.

"I failed." Harry sulked.

"Be that as it may, most wizards and witches are incapable of producing even a light mist." Snape informed her.

Harry didn't feel much better. She was not an ordinary witch. She was supposed to be extraordinary, like Tom. If she wasn't extraordinary, what use was she to Tom?

She spent the next two hours practicing under Professor Snape's watchful eye. Eventually Harry began to become exhausted and her performance started to decline instead of improve. When Snape realized this he called an end to the lessons and told her to come again next week. He told her she could practice on her own, but he felt it best that she not try to attempt the spell more than thrice a day, lest she exhaust herself.

Harry reluctantly agreed and left Snape's office with an exhausted farewell. She headed immediately to her dorm and grabbed her journal to relay her learnings to Tom.

Once she had relayed all she learned Tom thanked her and told her he would begin practicing when he had time. With that out of the way, Harry turned the conversation towards werewolves.

_Tom... what do you think about werewolves?_ She asked

_They are dark, dangerous creatures, even when it's not the full moon._

_How so?_

_Even untransformed, they are stronger and faster than humans. There scratches and bites leave nasty scars that even magic cannot heal. _

_But what do you think about them, Tom? _Harry prodded

_I think they have their uses in war, but are inherently dangerous and should be kept away from the general population. _Tom answered.

_Because they are dangerous._

_Yes._

_But aren't we dangerous too? You've taught me spells that can seriously and permanently injure someone much like werewolves._

_Perhaps, but we are far from the typical witch and wizard, Harriet._

Harry stopped their conversation there. From what she could tell Tom was far from fond of werewolves, and she understood they were dangerous from what she read, but she couldn't help but feel bad for them. It wasn't their fault they were turned. It's not something they could control. Surely not all werewolves were violent in human form... was it right to take away all their rights? Harry didn't know, but she did know she would not yet rat out Professor Lupin. Despite the fact that he may or may not be in league with Sirius Black, he was the best defence teacher she'd ever had at Hogwarts.

-x-

Time passed quickly for Harry. Every week she attended patronus lessons and slowly but steadily improved. She spoke of her progress to Tom, who admitted to not having much time to practice the spell and thus he had made little progress. The second Hogsmeade visit came and went and Harry was delighted to see Tom during the school year again. She was beyond glad that third years were allowed to visit the village and that Tom insisted he accompany her for protection. She almost hoped Sirius Black wasn't caught so she could continue to meet up with him.

Finally it was winter break and Harry would be once again going home to Tom. She had her trunk packed the night before and made sure Pansy did too. Harry woke bright and early the day they were leaving she ate a light breakfast and spent the whole morning on edge.

"I don't get why you're so excited to see Tom." Pansy said. "I mean you saw him on Samhain and a few weeks ago."

Harry blushed but ignored her friend.

When the time finally came, Harry boarded the train with her friends and found a compartment near the back. They were joined by Marcus Flint, Draco Malfoy and Gabriel Gonson shortly thereafter.

The six of them spent the train ride chatting about various topics. Marcus and Hermione discussed their studies. Marcus was doing much better in transfiguration and his other classes this year since he had enough time to focus on them. He was fairly certain he would manage E's and A's on all his upcoming NEWTs. Hermione discussed her and Harry's progress in their advanced studies and was quite proud to say that the two of them were nearing the end of the fourth year material.

Draco, Harry and Gabriel discussed quidditch with each other until Harry bowed out and decided to talk "girly" things Pansy who was feeling slightly left out. They discussed the latest issue of Witch Weekly, where Tom was voted the most eligible bachelor of 1993.

"Eligible my ass, if I have anything to say about that." Harry grumbled, which caused Pansy to giggle.

Finally, they arrived at King's Cross Station. Harry quickly said goodbye to her friends and ran straight for Tom, who she had already spotted out of the train's window. She threw herself at him for a hug which he returned with an amused smirk.

"Really, Harriet? You just saw me not too long ago." He teased.

"Doesn't seem like it!" Harry protested through a blush as she let go of Tom. "Come on. Let's go home. I already said goodbye to my friends."

Instead of answering he lightly grabbed her wrist and led her to the apparation point. They disappeared with a crack and reappeared in Diagon Alley. They walked through the magical shopping district to their flat in Actu Alley. It wasn't until Tom let go of her wrist that Harry realized he had been holding it the entire way home.

-x-

"Expecto patronum!" Harry said. A large amount of silver mist erupted from the tip of her wand. It swirled around a bit before dissipating. She grinned at Tom. "Well?"

"Good. I'm afraid I haven't made as much progress." Tom admitted reluctantly. "Expecto patronum." Silver mist came out of the tip of his wand, however it was nowhere near as much as when Harry cast the spell.

"Hm... what are you using as a happy memory?" Harry asked.

"When I got a body." Tom answered with a scowl. Harry frowned.

"Describe how you felt." She demanded.

"I felt... pleased. And proud of you." He replied.

"Well... pleased won't power the spell. You need a better memory."

"I don't _have_ a better memory." Tom snapped. "I cannot remember a time I truly felt happy. Pleased? Yes. Amused? Definitely. But happy? No."

"I see..." Harry murmured sadly. She took a minute to think about a solution to her problem when an idea struck her. "Well... I've felt happy. If you use legilimency on me will you feel my emotions?"

"Yes." Tom said. "I would. You want me to use your happy memory to fuel the spell?"

"Exactly!" Harry beamed at him.

"Very well. Prepare yourself." Tom waited as the dark haired girl took a deep breath before she nodded. "Legilimens."

It was strange to see the day he got a body from someone else's point of view. He immersed himself in the memory, he tried to pretend he _was_ Harry.

When he emerged from the memory he smiled. Not smirked, but a genuine, happy smile. Harry grinned back at him.

"That helped?" She asked.

"We will see. Expecto patronum." He cast the spell once more. This time there was much more mist and it was denser. It seemed to gather in one spot, half forming some sort of animal before it disappeared.

"Wicked! That's better than me!" Harry praised. "Looks like you almost had a corporeal patronus. It looked to be some sort of bird or something."

"Indeed. I'm curious as to the sort. I'll have to wait and see." Tom said. "That reminds me, you're about the right age to start learning occlumency."

"Really?" Harry inquired excitedly.

"Yes." Tom said. "We'll begin lessons after Yule. You'll have to sneak out of school for your lessons every week, but Slytherin's passage can take you out to the grounds..."

-x-

A few days later Yule finally came and Harry gave Tom a hand of glory. From Tom she received a book on the history of parselmouths. Pansy sent her some jewellery and make up, while Hermione sent her a homework planner. The Parkinsons sent her a beautiful new winter cloak and she felt guilty as she had not thought to get them anything. She received a large pile of candy from the quidditch team and had sent them all some candy as well, including some of her favourite muggle treats.

The last package Harry received just as she finished opening the others. Two owls carried a long box to the kitchen window and tapped on it, prompting Harry to run and open it to let them in. Harry curiously studied the box. She was looking for a card or note saying who it was for and who it was from. She found a small tag on the box saying "For Harry," but not who it was from. Before she could open it Tom asked her to pass it to him. He cast several complicated spells to check for curses or tampering and it came up clean. He passed the package back to Harry who opened it carefully. Once divested of the wrapping paper she opened the box. Inside was a brand new Firebolt.

"Oh Merlin!" the jade eyed girl exclaimed as she picked up the broom. "Bloody _fucking _hell! Who the hell loves me enough to send me a bloody _Firebolt_?"

"I don't know." Tom shrugged. "But it's safe to use, so does it really matter?"

Harry continued to stare at it in awe for several minutes. "I can't wait to get to Hogwarts and try it out!" she finally said.

After opening the gifts Harry and Tom went over to the Parkinsons for the rest of the day. Harry profusely thanked them for the cloak and apologized for not sending them anything.

Harry was glad to spend Yule with the Parkinsons and had a great time. By the time she left she was stuffed full of food and ready for bed.

The rest of the holidays passed in a blur. Occlumency lessons started shortly after Yule and Harry was making slow but steady progress. Tom said the best way to learn was to have a legilimens attack your mind while you attempt to clear it. By the end of the lessons Harry would feel extremely exhausted but meditated to clear her mind every day before bed.

On New Year's Eve she baked Tom a birthday cake and they privately celebrated his real birthday. They spent the day talking about school and politics. Tom talked about his next planned bill which would make it mandatory to introduce muggleborns to the magical world at the first sign of magic and assign a mentor to them. They also discussed the progress being made in funding a magical orphanage that doubled as a primary school for young witches and wizards.

Harry had two more occlumency lessons between New Years and the start of school. Both went rather well. Harry was often left with a headache afterwards, but Tom gave her a potion that got rid of the pain. He told her he would bring a vial of it to every occlumency lesson they had during the school year.

She was once again disappointed to leave Tom, but the promise of seeing him every Saturday evening was enough to keep her upbeat and happy on the trip back to Hogwarts.

-o-

AN: Sorry my updates have slowed down. But I'm not giving up on this story. I just somehow got a bit of a life. And started watching Gundam Seed again... Plus sometimes with my depression I just feel like lying in bed and crying all day, so I don't get much done on those days.

Oh, about Sirius, I'm going to say right now that I won't bash him, but there will be friction between him and Harry based on their differing ideals. If you think I cross the line into bashing, let me know and I'll try to tone it down. I just don't think someone who hates all things "dark" would go "dark" just because someone he barely knows is, even if he loves them.

I love you guys. Thank you so much for your support.

Best,

Eliza


	19. The Black Mystery

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 19: The Black Mystery

-o-

The week after break passed quickly when Harry returned to school. Classes continued as usual. Her and Hermione were getting near perfect marks from all their studying ahead. They continued to work on their muggle maths even while taking arithmancy. They were considering adding chemistry to their curriculums after the current year.

Hermione's favourite class was arithmancy and Harry enjoyed it too, though she preferred more practical classes like defence. They were currently learning spells that did conversions for them and spells that gave the value of sine, cosine and tangent ant different angles, much like a muggle calculator. They were also given complex number charts to help them.

Harry had several of these spread out one day when Hermione burst into the library looking half-angry and half-upset. Harry immediately put down her quill and asked her friend what the problem was.

"Ronald Weasley!" Hermione whisper-shouted. "He's the problem."

Harry stared at her bushy haired friend for several seconds before she sighed. "What did he do now?"

"He's saying Crookshanks ate Scabbers!" At Harry's blank look she added "his rat."

"Well, does he have any proof?" Harry asked hesitantly.

"Not really. Only some blood and some of what could be any cat's fur on his bed." Hermione grumbled. "The stupid rat is obviously gone, too, but it could have run away for all we know!"

"Rats run away?" Harry inquired sceptically.

"Well... Maybe. Argh. Let's drop this. I have arithmancy homework to do... and a potions essay to write as well." Hermione declared.

Harry returned to her arithmancy assignment and Hermione pulled hers out. They worked diligently on their homework for half an hour before they were joined by Marcus Flint. Harry grunted a greeting to the older boy while Hermione said a more polite "hello Marcus." Marcus nodded at Harry and returned Hermione's greeting. He then pulled out a quill and ink, parchment, and a book titled "_Advanced Transfiguration of Humans: Permanent and Temporal_."

The three worked in mostly companionable silence, occasionally breaking it to ask or answer a question.

After completing her assigned work Harry pulled out a fifth year defence book and began to take notes on the spells inside. She was only interrupted by Marcus when he completed his own work.

"Quidditch on Saturday. Us versus Ravenclaw. Wonder what they'll think of your new brrom?" he chuckled softly. Hermione glanced at him and smiled before returning to her own work.

"Probably will wet themselves. Chang doesn't have a chance at the snitch now." Harry smirked.

"Course not. You'll be flying circled 'round the lot of us on that thing." Marcus grinned.

-x-

Harry exited the quidditch change room only to find Daphne Greengrass waiting for her.

"Best not fall off your broom this time, Potter." She taunted. "I'd hate to see you break your neck."

"Shut up already, Greengrass." Harry dismissed the girl and attempted to stride past her.

"Did I say hate? I meant _love_." The blonde girl sneered.

"Look Greengrass, I don't have time to deal with you. I have a quidditch game to win." Harry snapped. "If I'm late because of you it'll be your fault if we lose the match."

Daphne crossed her arms and looked away. "Whatever, mudblood."

"Why you—" Harry cut herself off. "IF I didn't have a quidditch match to get to I'd do worse than the last time you uttered that word in my presence."

With one final glare over her shoulder Harry made her way to the quidditch pitch. Shortly after she arrived Marcus shook hands with the Ravenclaw captain. Harry mounted her Firebolt and took off at Hooch's whistle. She flew up high and watched the pitch. She grinned when she heard what Lee Jordan was saying.

"Bloody hell—sorry, Professor—is that a Firebolt Potter's riding? How did she score one of those?!"

"Jordan!" McGonagall snapped.

"Right. Look at her fly though! I hear that thing foes from zero to one-fifty miles per hour in ten seconds! Not to mention the superb balance and speed." Jordan continued unrepentantly.

"Jordan! You're a quidditch commentator, not a broom salesman." McGonagall said exasperatedly.

"Right, sorry. Er, Flint has the quaffle, he passes to Malfoy who passes to Pucey, only to be intercepted by the Ravenclaw captain... Gonson hurls a bludger at him and it—misses by a hair's breadth!—"

While it was satisfying to see Jordon fanboy over her broom, she tuned him out. The usual chatter just distracted her from her task. She had to admit while yes, she loved her teammates (except George Gibson) she wasn't much of a team player. Seeker was pretty much a position that required no team work.

Harry eyed the score board. They were up twenty points and they were only a few minutes into the game. The Ravenclaw keeper made Bletchley look like a professional. Not that Bletchley was a bad player himself, he just had nothing on Oliver Wood, though you wouldn't hear the Slytherins admit that out loud where anyone could hear.

The jade eyed girl looked at her Ravenclaw counterpart, Cho Chang. The girl would be no trouble, she had a low quality broom and was a mediocre seeker at best. She was pretty though, she had to admit. She could see why the Ravenclaw was so popular with the boys. Still, the girl had little talent on the quidditch pitch and Harry wondered if she was really the best Ravenclaw had to offer.

Chang suddenly dived and Harry followed after her while she scanned the general direction Cho flew in for the snitch. Upon not seeing it Harry called Cho's bluff and resumed circling the pitch. She flew three laps around it before she decided to interfere with the other team's chasers and beaters. She carefully descended until she was level with most of the players and started literally flying circles around the Ravenclaw chasers. She would fly up to the other players and then miss them by barely a few inches. Eventually the Ravenclaw got so worried she would crash into them that every time she got within four feet of them they moved. It made it very difficult for them to concentrate on the quaffle. Harry's teammates took to flying behind her as often times the Ravenclaws were forced to move away from the path of the quaffle that had been passed to them, so it was easy for the Slytherin chaser's to steal it. Once the game was firmly in Slytherin's favour she abandoned her role as distraction and returned to searching for the snitch. It was another twenty minutes into the game when she finally saw it. It was half ways across the pitch from her. Harry decided it would be a good time to test her broom's speed.

She shot off in a blur towards the snitch. As she approached it she slowed down minutely so she didn't fly past it. The snitch suddenly flew straight up and Harry pulled up on her broom to follow it. She was practically flying vertically at this point and used all the strength in her legs to keep herself on her broom as she reached for the snitch with her right hand. After a short chase she finally grabbed the snitch and straightened out her broom. She held the snitch up high over her head as she descended to the ground. Once safely on the ground Harry glanced at the score. Seventy to two-ninety in Slytherin's favour.

The Slytherins in the stands were shouting and cheering. Slytherin was back in the running for the quidditch cup.

-x-

"Legilimens!" a deep voice called out as soon as Harry walked into the shrieking shack three weeks after the quidditch match. She saw memories of the day's events in her mind's eye before she could even try to clear her mind. After several seconds she finally managed to clear her mind so no more memories could be seen.

"Tsk, tsk." Tom said while he shook his head. "You need to be more prepared. You need to be able to clear your mind as soon as you feel the touch of another's. If I was Dumbledore I would have had time to see something important."

"I guess you're right." Harry sighed. She had made progress in the weeks they had been practicing, but Tom was a demanding teacher. A good one, but he demanded the best from you. Harry was now able to sense even the lightest touch of legilimency, but she still had trouble clearing her mind as soon as she felt it.

"Don't look so distraught." Tom pinched the bridge of his nose. "You're doing as well as I had anticipated."

That was a lie. It was taking his companion more time to learn than he had thought, but Tom didn't want to discourage the girl. She obviously had no talent for the mind arts. Or at least no talent for occlumency. He had yet to have her attempt legilimency. He did not want to let her into his mind so for that they needed a test subject.

"Let us try a different approach." Tom said after a pause. "Instead of clearing your mind so there is nothing to see, try to force me out. First you mist direct your magic at the person casting the spell—you will be able to tell who it is by the feel of their magic. Second you must envision yourself pushing the person out with your magic. It's a matter of will power. You have to _want _the person out of your mind."

"That sounds easy enough." Harry commented. "Why didn't we start with this approach?"

"Because it is generally considered to be more difficult. Also, if the will of the other person is stronger it won't work. Ditto if they have greater magical strength. So you'll still have to learn the other way, I'm afraid. However it's best to be caught by surprise when learning the other way."

Harry nodded. "Right. Let's go."

"Legilimens!" Tom intoned clearly. Harry immediately felt him touch her mind. She instinctively tried to clear her mind before she remembered to try to push Tom out. She tried visualizing physically pushing him, but it didn't work. Tom withdrew from her mind to give her a breather. After a five minute break they tried again.

On and on they went. Eventually Harry thought to envision her magic pushing at Tom's. Once she imagined a light green force field and a darker green force field pushing against each other it got much easier.

"Good progress, dearest." Tom encouraged. "One more time. Legilimens!"

As soon as Tom was in her head she pushed out with her magic. She kept pushing and pushing until he was out. But suddenly she was in his mind. Harry saw flashes of memories. A dead snake, crushed and cut up. Feelings of anger and sadness. A rabbit handing from the rafters, a feeling of vindication. A wardrobe on fire, terror. Being called a mudblood, resentment and hatred... on and on it went for what seemed like forever. Eventually Harry stopped pushing but she was lost in Tom's head and couldn't get out.

Tom on the other hand, was shocked. He too saw the memories of his life flash before him, but he was initially too surprised to do anything for several seconds. Eventually he remembered himself and cleared his mind, but he still felt the young girl's presence in his mind. Upon realizing that Harry didn't know how to pull out of his mind Tom gently pushed her out. Obviously he was wrong. She had some talent with legilimency, if not occlumency.

Once of Tom's mind Harry collapsed on the floor of the shrieking shack in a heap. "What was that?"

"It would appear you're a natural at legilimency. My hypothesis is that once I was out of your mind, your magic kept pushing and established a connection with my own. As I was rather shocked that you managed to perform legilimency without any instruction, I wasn't able to immediately clear my mind and you saw some of my memories. Once I did and you had yet to withdraw I realized you were unable to and pushed you out." Tom explained to the girl.

"I see... Sorry. I'll try not to do it again." Harry murmured. A lot of what she had seen was rather upsetting. Obviously Tom's childhood and Hogwarts years had been more difficult than her own.

"On the contrary. You will enter my mind once more and attempt to withdraw by yourself in the future. Don't worry, I'll clear my mind so you don't see anything... distressing." Tom told her. "But that will be next week. In the mean time try to clear your mind every night before bed."

"Yes, Tom." Harry bobbed her head in agreement.

"You did well today, dearest." Tom praised.

Harry beamed at him.

-x-

"Harry!" Hermione called the morning after the Gryffindor-Ravenclaw quidditch match. "Are you okay? Did you hear what happened?"

"Er, I'm fine. Is there really the need to assault me the moment I leave the common room?"

"Sirius Black attacked again last night!" the brunette exclaimed.

"What?" Harry gaped. "Really?"

"Yes! And get this!" Hermione said wide eyed. "He attacked the boy's dormitory. Ronald Weasley's bed to be exact."

"Wait—why would he attack the boys? He's my godfather. He's got to know I'm a girl." Harry pointed out disbelievingly.

"I know!" Hermione agreed. "I have a feeling we're missing something."

"Let's review the facts." Harry started to walk towards the library. "First of all, he's Voldemort's right hand man—"

"That's not fact!" Hermione cried. "That's speculation."

"Fine. You do it then." Harry grumbled.

"Fine. Okay, so. He was in Azkaban for twelve years and stayed sane enough to escape. Second, he came to Hogwarts, so whatever he wants is here. Third, he attacked Gryffindor so what he wants is there, specifically the third year boy's dorm. Um... fourth he's your godfather. He admitted to helping kill your parents and was caught in the act of blowing up thirteen muggles and Peter Pettigrew..." Hermione trailed off. "I looked up his trial, by the way."

"And?" Harry asked in a whisper as they entered the library. Hermione stared at her for a moment before answering.

"He didn't have one." She said finally. "So nothing could be gleaned from that."

"Why didn't he have a trial?" the jade eyed girl inquired.

"He was caught in the act of killing the muggles and Pettigrew, and confessed to turning your parents over to you-know-who."

"Your point?" Harry prodded.

"The ministry had so much to do when you-know-who fell. So they just locked up and sentenced several of those who confessed. Lots of people didn't get a trial. Of course, most prominent families who pleaded guilty—like the Lestranges—got a trial. But I guess they felt that there was enough evidence against Black that he didn't get one." Hermione explained quietly.

"I see... No trial, huh?" Harry murmured to herself. "Hey Hermione..."

"Hm?" the bushy haired girl asked as she set out her books.

"I thought you didn't like jewellery." Harry commented. "What's with the strange necklace? Looks like some sort of hourglass?"

A panicked expression appeared on Hermione's face. She glanced down and saw her necklace had fallen out of her robes. She quickly tucked it back in and looked around the area for other witnesses.

"When did you notice it?" she asked in a panicked whisper.

"It just fell out of your robes when you were taking your books out." Harry said suspiciously. "What's the big deal? It's just a necklace, right?"

"Right! Just a necklace." Hermione giggled nervously. "No need to panic. None at all. It's no big deal. Just ignore it. And don't tell anyone you saw it. Okay?"

Harry gave her desperate friend a look. "Hermione, it's obviously not just a necklace. I'll tell no one, not even Pansy, so long as you explain what the big deal is."

"Not even Tom?" Hermione asked after a pause.

"Not even Tom." Harry agreed.

"It's a time turner." The brunette whispered. "It's how I've been getting to all my classes."

"They actually gave you one of those?" Harry asked in awe. "But they're really strict about giving them out, according to Tom."

Hermione nodded. "They are, but Professor McGonagall managed to get me one."

"She must _really _like you." The black haired girl commented.

"But Harry, one of the rules was that I _mustn't tell anyone_. So you have to pretend not to know, okay?"

"No problem." Harry agreed. "What did you get for question fifty six on our arithmancy assignment? I got forty two..."

"Oh no, I got sixty nine." Hermione bit her lip. "Let me see your calculations."

In the end neither of them were right. The answer was twenty one. Both girls laughed at how far off they originally were. This was why they often compared their arithmancy assignments. Usually they both had the correct answer, but occasionally they made a small calculation error like forgetting the BEDMAS order or didn't FOIL something correctly.

Their studying was interrupted by Marcus Flint after an hour. Though it pushed back her studies Hermione was more than happy to explain more about the things muggles had done and could do to Marcus. The unlikely duo continued to converse for a good two hours. The subject having changed from muggles to Marcus's future plans. Harry watched with a smile on her face as Marcus animatedly told his younger companion of her plans to play professional quidditch or be an unspeakable.

"Don't you need top marks to be an unspeakable?" Harry cut in.

"They certainly help, but what they're really after are people with original ideas. And those who don't mind endless research." Marcus said. "Personally I want to try and combine some muggle inventions with magic. You know, like make a TV that runs on magic... or at least one that could be used in a magical environment."

"Really?" Hermione asked excitedly. "But you'll have to study a lot of muggle chemistry and physics..."

"Yeah, but it'll be worth it." Marcus grinned.

Her curiosity sated, Harry backed out of the conversation once more. She was pretty sure, after months of casual observation that Hermione had a crush on Marcus and was the one who sent him a valentine the previous year.

Personally, Harry thought they would make a cute couple. Though Marcus was five years older, Harry was sure that the two of them could work as a couple. The jade eyed girl wasn't completely sure how Marcus felt about Hermione, but she knew he was fond of the bushy haired girl on some level. She would have to make sure the two kept in touch after Marcus finished school.

-x-

"Expecto patronum!" Harry shouted. She was once again practicing the patronus charm with Snape, as she did every Sunday.

Silvery mist erupted from the tip of her wand and swirled around a smallish point, half forming an animal. It looked to be something small, but that was all Harry noticed.

"Very good. You are progressing nicely." Snape told Harry.

"It was almost corporeal that time, wasn't it?" Harry exclaimed excitedly. The memory she used was obviously a good one, she figured. She was using one of the previous day, which was a Hogsmeade visit. Harry had spent the entire day with just Tom. The twosome had eaten lunch at the Three Broomsticks, bought sweets at Honeydukes, and generally just enjoyed each other's company. It was almost like a date, Harry thought. Overall, it was an amazing day and made for an amazing memory.

"Try once more." Snape commanded.

Harry nodded and moved to cast the spell once more. She decided to try something a little different though. Instead of focusing on a memory she thought of something that made her feel happy in general—Tom. A silly smile crossed her face and she shouted the incantation.

A silver bird burst forth from her wand. It flew about the room and Harry giggled in delight.

"A crow!" she cooed.

"Indeed." Snape smirked. "Well done, Miss Potter. Twenty points to Slytherin. Now I can have my Sunday evenings to myself again."

"Thank you so much professor! Your help is greatly appreciated!"

"Don't mention it." Snape sneered. "No really, don't. I don't want others to waste my time with requests of private tutelage."

"Sure thing, sir." Harry agreed easily.

-x-

The rest of the year progressed normally. Harry spoke with Tom daily through their linked diaries, attended class, studied ahead, played quidditch and practiced occlumency with Tom. She easily maintained her spot at the top of the class with Hermione.

The weather turned warm and cloudless as May and June passed and July approached. The students sadly had little time to enjoy the weather as they were busy preparing for the upcoming exams.

Instead of studying ahead like usual, Harry and Hermione had taken to reviewing the material covered in class and quizzing each other relentlessly. Even Pansy, who didn't care much as long as she passed joined in the studying. They saw little of Marcus, Adrian Pucey, Bletchley and Gabriel Gonson as the four boys prepared for their NEWTs.

Classes were intense the week before exams. It seemed like the professors were trying to cram a year's worth of lessons into one week of review. They were given loads of worksheets to complete that were supposed to help them review. There was so much work Harry was starting to wish she had a time turner like Hermione, who was starting to get really stressed. She had managed to keep up with her huge work load as the only class she really covered anything new in was Ancient Runes, but all the extra work before exams was catching up with her. In the end Harry persuaded her to use the time turner not just for class like she was supposed to, but to give her extra study hours as well. To make sure no one noticed Hermione in two places at once the girls appropriated an abandoned classroom deep in the dungeons to study in.

When exams finally caught up to them Harry was almost relieved. Her first exam was transfiguration. She had to turn a teapot into a tortoise for the practical and answer endless questions on theory for the written portion. That was Monday morning. In the afternoon they had charms.

The written portion of that exam was much easier than the transfiguration one, and the practical included the cheering charm. Harry was pretty certain she had performed the spell adequately and didn't over power it like Pansy did.

Tuesday morning brought the care of magical creatures exam. They were each assigned a different animal and had to write out everything they knew about it. Harry was give crups while Pansy received kneazles whilst poor Hermione received flobberworms. Harry and Hermione were sure they passed with flying colours but Pansy was a bit more hesitant.

In the afternoon they had potions where they brewed a confusing concoction. All three girls turned in near perfect potions and aside from Draco Malfoy, they were the only ones Snape didn't sneer at.

AT midnight they had astronomy where they had to complete star charts. The next morning they had history of magic where Harry scribbled down all she knew about the medieval witch hunts.

That afternoon they gathered in the blistering hot greenhouses for their herbology exam. Harry was pretty sure Neville Longbottom was the only person who out performed her. Though she loathed to admit that Longbottom was better than her at anything.

Thursday brought the last two exams, defence against dark arts and arithmancy. I defence they had to go through an obstacle course full of dangerous creature they had covered over the course of the year. In arithmancy they were given several problems that require the use of the charms they had been taught for cosines and the likes. They also had to list the magical properties of the numbers zero to nine and interpret the results of several questions to see what was predicted. Over all it was the most challenging exam and the two studious girls enjoyed it immensely.

At the same time as her arithmancy exam Hermione was sitting her divination exam. When she exited the tower and came to join Harry in the classroom they had taken over she looked rather spooked.

"You know how I said Trelawney was a fraud?" Hermione said breathlessly. Harry nodded with an amused look on her face. "I take it back. I think she gave a genuine prophecy in my exam."

"Wait, what?" Harry snapped to attention. "What do you mean?"

"I mean I read about a certain type of seer. They're really rare but sometimes they sound and look like they're possessed or something when they give prophecies and don't remember them after they give them. I think Trelawney gave me a prophecy like that."

"What did it say?" The jade eyed girl demanded.

"It was about the darj lord and his servant." Hermione took a deep breath. "I can't remember the exact wording, but it said tonight the servant would attempt to rejoin the master and if he failed or not the dark lord would still come back more terrible than ever before."

"Shite." Harry swore. "That was probably real. I know she made a prophecy before, a real one, I mean."

Harry went on to explain the prophecy about the dark lord and Neville Longbottom and how she was involved. When she finished her busy haired friend was cursing Albus Dozen Middle Names Dumbledore for using a child, _her friend, _as a decoy. Harry smiled at Hermione's passion.

"Come on. Let's relax for now Hermione. There's nothing we can do about it. We'll go outside and enjoy the evening with Pansy. Let's go find her." Harry told Hermione soothingly. Hermione agreed and the two girls went to find the third member of their group.

Once they found Pansy they walked out onto the lawn. They sat down near the edge of the grounds away from most other people. They were talking when Hermione saw something out of the corner of her eye.

"Scabbers!" She cried and pounced at the rat. She grabbed it and petrified the struggling rodent so she could take it to Ronald Weasley later. "I know Crookshanks didn't eat you!"

Suddenly Hermione was knocked over by an enormous black dog. It had pounced on her and grabbed her by the leg. It pulled her away like a rag doll.

They chased after the dog all the way to the whomping willow. They rana s fast as they could but even with Hermione, the dog was faster. The dog dragged Hermione through a gap in the roots. When Harry and Pansy caught up they were halted by the whipping branches of the whomping willow.

"We need to make a run for that opening!" Harry told Pansy.

"Are you suicidal!?" Pansy shrieked.

"Only a little!" Harry said as she ran towards the opening. She didn't look back until she had made it through to the opening. When she did she was Pansy coming after her, just barely dodging the trees branches.

"You sure you're not a Gryffindor?" Pansy panted.

"The hat considered it." Harry admitted. "Come on."

They crawled in head first and slid down an earthy slope to the bottom of a low tunnel. It was a long passage and Harry worried more and more about Hermione as they wandered down it. After what seemed like hours but was really only a few minutes the tunnel began to rise again.

The girls exited the tunnel into a familiar, messy, dusty room. Harry looked around the room at the peeling wallpaper and broken furniture.

"We're in the shrieking shack." She told Pansy. While she hadn't been in this room, it was similar enough to the rest of the shack for her to recognize it. The duo moved through the room with their wands drawn. They entered another room and found Hermione laying beside a large four poster bed.

"Are you okay?" Harry gasped. She and Pansy ran over to their friend.

"I think I broke my leg." Hermione answered. "But Harry, you have to get out of here. That wasn't a dog, it was an animagus—"

Harry whipped around when she heard a door close behind her and her friends. She saw a man standing in the shadows of the corner by the door. It was Sirius Black.

"Expelliarmus!" he croaked as pointed Hermione's wand at Harry and Pansy. Their wands flew out their hands and up into the air. Black expertly caught them.

"Brave of you not to run for a teacher." He said. "I knew you would come for your friend."

"So you really are after me, huh? And here Hermione and I thought there was something more to it." She cried with false bravado.

"What?" Black look startled. "Kill you? No, of course not Harry. You and your friend were right."

"Then what are you after?" she demanded. Pansy cowered behind her.

"The rat!" he snarled.

"Scabbers?" Hermione piped up. "What do you want some boy's rat for?"

"That's no ordinary rat." Black said grimly. "It's an animagus."

"Like you?" Hermione challenged. Black nodded. "Prove it."

"Give me the rat." Harry grabbed the petrified rat from Hermione and passed it to her godfather.

"Thank you, Fawn." He said and pointed Hermione's wand at the rat. In a burst of light the rat had transformed into a man.

"Who _is_ that?" Pansy asked.

"Peter Pettigrew." Black answered.

"But you killed him! Along with thirteen muggles!" Harry protested.

"That's what he wanted you to think. Really, he blew up the street and transformed into a rat to get away when I caught up to him to confront him for betraying James and Lily. He shouted out about how I betrayed them... then before a could protest... boom... He framed me, the little rat."

"What are you on about? You're the one who betrayed my parents?"

Black opened his mouth to answer but was interrupted by the arrival of Remus Lupin.

"Peter!" The werewolf breathed. "So he really is here, the map didn't lie."

"The map?" the trio of girls asked in unison but were ignored.

"But why hide?" Lupin continued. "Unless..." he glanced at Black. "You switched without telling me?"

Slowly, Black nodded. "Yes. I'm sorry to say we thought you were the traitor."

"I see..." Lupin frowned but walked up to Black and embraced him like a brother.

"Can someone explain what's going on!?" Harry demanded.

"Sorry, Fawn." Black said. "I'll explain. Your father, Remus, Peter and I were all friends. When your parents went into hiding they used the Fidelius charm."

"The what?" Pansy asked. Remus quickly explained the spell to the girls before he let Black continue the story.

"They were going to make me secret keeper but I knew I was too obvious. We thought Remus was the traitor—we knew there was one—so I suggested Peter. Unfortunately he was the real traitor. A servant of Voldemort." Pansy and Hermione flinched at the use of the dark lord's name.

"You said Peter killed the muggles?" Hermione asked.

"Yes." Black nodded. "I went to confront him for betraying Harry's parents. But he screamed that it was I who betrayed them and blew up the street before I could protest. He cut off his finger, transformed into a rat and disappeared.

"But you confessed to betraying my parents." Harry pointed out.

"I said it was my fault they were dead, not that I betrayed them. I meant that it was my fault for suggesting Peter."

"I see..." Harry breathed. "So you're innocent."

"Yes." Black agreed. "But not for long. I'll kill that miserable rat!" he finished with a sneer.

"No!" Hermione shouted. "You're innocent! If you kill Pettigrew that can't be proved!"

"Hermione's right." Harry sighed. "You can't kill him. He has to stand trial for his crimes and go to Azkaban."

"Very well, Harry." Black nodded. "They were your parents. If that is what you want, then that's what we'll do."

"Come on let's get back to the castle." Pansy said. She and Harry picked up Hermione and helped support her so she didn't further injure her leg.

"Sorry about that." Black grinned sheepishly as he handed the girls their wands back.

"It's okay." Hermione said through the pain of walking.

Lupin levitated the still petrified Pettigrew behind the three girls as they exited the shack into the tunnel. Black walked behind him as a dog so he didn't arouse suspicion while crossing the grounds.

The exited the tunnel just as the full moon was rising. Lupin froze.

"Oh no." He gasped. "I forgot to take my Wolfsbane."

The dog, the brunette and the jade eyed girl all looked panicked, whilst Pansy looked confused.

"He's a werewolf!" Harry shouted. "Run!"

Black pounced on Lupin as he transformed. The trio of girls ran as fast as they could with the injured Hermione while taking over the job of levitating Pettigrew as well.

When they reached the entrance hall they screamed for help, but no one was near enough to hear them.

"Go get a teacher!" Harry commanded Pansy after they gently helped Hermione sit. "Hurry!"

Pansy took off at a run for the nearest teacher. She came back five minutes later with Professor Flitwick in tow.

"Oh dear. What do we have here?"

-o-

AN: Well there you go. First of all, much will be explained next chapter. As for the no Snape in the shack... I couldn't be bothered, lol. Whatever. This is an AU. What I say goes. Deal with it.

When I say Harry is a natural at legilimency I mean it in the way someone is a natural at swimming, for example. Not the whole "natural occlumens/legilimens" thing of fanon.

Sorry, no Sirius/Remus in this fic. Though there will be some one-sided slash on Sirius's part. Guess who!

Yes, Hermione/Marcus. No, this is not up for debate. To be clear on pairings—Tom/Harry, Draco/Pansy, Marcus/Hermione.

Um... I think that's it. Thanks for all the support. I love you guys. I squee whenever I get a review. Though I'm anxious/terrified of getting flames. Haven't actually received one yet, which surprises me! Unless you count the review where someone said Harry's parents would be ashamed of her... Which who knows? Maybe they would be, maybe they wouldn't.

Best,

Eliza


	20. Trial and Error

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 20: Trial and Error

-o-

Hermione was taken to the hospital wing where her broken leg, bruises, and cuts were quickly treated by the matron. Once her bones were mended, her cuts closed and her contusions faded she was led to the headmaster's office.

When she arrived she saw Pansy and Harry sitting in two of three chairs in front of the headmaster's desk and Peter Pettigrew lying on the floor, still petrified. Pansy was sitting quietly while Harry explained the night's events to Dumbledore.

"I see." Dumbledore said solemnly. "It would appear we made a grave mistake twelve years ago."

He then floo'd the department of magical law enforcement and explained the situation. Minutes later Madam Amelia Bones came through the floo.

"This him, then?" she asked.

"Yes, Peter Pettigrew. As you can see, he is clearly missing a finger." Dumbledore replied.

"Indeed." Madam Bones said. "I shall take him into custody and for questioning. While it is unclear at this time whether Black told the truth, the circumstances certainly cast a reasonable doubt upon him."

"So he'll get a trial then?" Harry pressed.

"Yes, at the very least." Amelia informed her. "Speaking of the man, where is he?"

Harry didn't want to rat out Lupin for not taking his Wolfsbane and explain that Sirius was an animagus, so she briefly panicked before managing to compose herself. "Oh, er. He didn't want to be kissed on sight, you." She lied. "So he didn't come with us. He hid."

"I see." Madam Bones pursed her lips. "Well, he needs to be taken into custody too."

"But he didn't do it!" Harry protested.

"That has yet to be proven." The elder woman countered.

"I doubt he'll come in quietly if you throw him in Azkaban until the trial." Harry said, her voice full of worry for her godfather.

"He won't be." Madam Bones assured her. "He'll be kept in a ministry holding cell, as will Pettigrew."

"I see. Then I'll talk to Sirius and make sure he goes to the ministry tomorrow morning."

Amelia Bones shook her head. "I'm afraid he will need to come now. Please lead me to him."

"We can't." Hermione said. "He's hiding in the Forbidden forest."

"And it's a full moon tonight." Pansy added. "Too dangerous to go get him."

Harry hid a smile. Her friends weren't implicating Lupin either.

"Very well. Tomorrow morning them. I will return at eleven 'o'clock. I expect to see him waiting."

"Yes, ma'am." The girls chorused.

With that, the head of magical law enforcement turned and floo'd back to the ministry.

"That was very kind of you girls not to implicate Remus." Dumbledore praised with twinkling eyes. "He would be in much trouble if anyone found out he was loose on the grounds without his Wolfsbane."

"Well," Harry shifted uncomfortably and glanced at her friends. They seemed equally uncomfortable. "He was friends with my dad."

"Still, that was very noble of you. I am proud." Harry almost threw up. Pansy and Hermione didn't look too pleased either.

"Thank you, sir. That's very kind of you to say." Harry managed to say with a polite smile on her face. Inwardly she cringed.

She hated that man.

Harry went to bed as soon as she returned to her dorm without writing to Tom to explain the night's events. She was too tired, but resolved to write to him the next day.

-x-

The next morning a large black dog was found lying outside the castle doors. Dumbledore immediately realized who it was and let the dog inside. He led it to his office and then called for Harry.

Ten minutes later Harry arrived in his office. She brightened when she saw Sirius sitting on the floor by the headmaster's feet in his animagus form. Upon seeing Harry, Sirius transformed into his human form.

"Fawn!" he broke out into a grin.

"It's good to see you again." Harry said.

"Since there are another two hours until Amelia comes for Sirius, I thought you might want to spend some time to get to know each other better." Dumbledore explained with that damnable twinkle in his eyes. Harry was sure that it was some sort of spell doing that.

"Thank you, professor." She said politely.

"I'll just leave you two alone." Dumbledore stood from behind his desk and began to walk out of his office. "I'll return shortly before eleven."

Harry and Sirius were silent for a moment.

"So what do you call me "fawn"?" the dark haired girl asked eventually.

"Prongs—that was your father's nickname—was an animagus too. A stag, specifically." Sirius answered with a grin. "Mooney—that is, Remus—was the first to call you that and it stuck."

"So all of you were animagi?" Harry inquired.

"Except for Mooney, yes." The last Black nodded. "See, we found out Remus was a werewolf and wanted to help him so he didn't suffer as much during the full moon. Werewolves are harmless to animals, so we decided to become animagi so we could spend the full moon with him."

"That was very thoughtful of you." Harry smiled. "It's obvious you were amazing friends to go to that length."

"Thanks, Fawn." The gaunt looking man grinned. "Speaking of... tell me about your friends."

"Well, there's the Slytherin quidditch team." Harry begun, not noticing Sirius flinch at the word Slytherin. "I made seeker my first year—" Sirius beamed proudly "—and ever since they've been like a team of big brothers. I'm probably closest to the captain, Marcus Flint, though.

"You met Pansy and Hermione. Pansy is a Slytherin like me and Hermione is a Gryffindor. Hermione is really smart. She's amazing at memorizing things and is very empathetic. She loves learning and is somewhat of a know it all. She can come across a bit standoffish, but is very kind and compassionate.

"Pansy on the other hand is more girly. She likes makeup, fashion, gossip and all that stuff. She's a bit prejudiced against muggleborns, but is slowly changing and considers Hermione a friend despite her status as a muggleborn. She doesn't care much for studying but still does fairly well in all her classes. Her parents are my guardians.—"

"How did that happen?" Sirius asked with concern. From what he remembered Edgar Parkinson was a suspected Death Eater.

"Oh. Well, I was originally placed with my Aunt Petunia but a law passed that prevents muggles from having custody of magical orphans. The Parkinsons are distantly related to me so—"

"The Potter's aren't related to the Parkinsons. I know the family tree fairly well, up to ten generations past and there wasn't a Parkinson in sight." Sirius interrupted.

"They're related through my mum, actually." Harry explained. "I did a blood test at Gringott's and they showed up on mum's side of the family. Anyways, they petitioned for guardianship and won based on the relation and my close friendship with their daughter. But I don't really live with them."

"Why not?" Where would she live if not with her guardians, Sirius wondered.

"I live with my friend, Tom." Harry told him. "We met when I was nine and he was fifteen. He was the one who told me I'm a witch."

Sirius looked concerned at this information. "Why do you stay with him?"

"Because I want to. Before the Parkinsons got custody I spent most of my summers and holidays with him so I didn't have to stay with Aunt Petunia." Harry said carefully.

"It just seems strange that someone his age would take interest in someone your age." Sirius pressed. "Plus from what I've gathered from the papers, his grandfather killed your parents."

"Tom is not his grandfather." Well, he sort of was, but Sirius didn't need to know that. "When we met he saw a lot of himself in me and wanted to help me because no one helped him."

"I still think it's suspicious." Sirius pouted. "At least it won't be for much longer."

Harry froze. "What do you mean?"

"Well, once I'm proven innocent of all crimes, I'll surely get custody of you. I'm your godfather after all."

Harry's face went blank and her tone turned cold. "If you take me away from Tom I'll never forgive you."

"Oh, Fawn, don't be like that." Sirius said lightly. He was not taking her seriously. "You'll get over it. I'm sure you'll love living with me."

"I don't think you understand. If you don't vow to never petition for guardianship, I'll make sure you're found guilty in your upcoming trial." Harry threatened.

Sirius's already pale face went white. "You wouldn't—"

"I would." Harry interrupted, her voice like ice. "I'd even make sure Pettigrew went free."

"Harry, your parents wanted me to be your guardian if anything happened to them—"

"To hell with what they wanted!" Harry shouted. "They're _dead_!"

"Do not speak of your parents like that, young lady!" Sirius snapped.

"They're _my _parents. I'll speak of them how I please." Harry retorted. "And I swear, if you don't make the vow you'll be sorry."

Harry's face softened. She understood where Sirius was coming from, but she had to make him understand that Tom always came first.

"I'm not saying I don't want a relationship with you. I'd like to get to know you." She sighed. "But I'm happy where I am and I won't let anyone ruin that."

"... I understand." Sirius said after a long pause. "I, Sirius Orion Black, vow to never petition for the guardianship of Harriet Lily Potter under pain of losing my magic. So mote it be."

"Thank you." Harry smiled at him.

"I just hope I don't regret this." Sirius muttered to himself.

They spent the rest of their time getting to know each other. Harry noticed that whenever she brought up her house or her housemates Sirius seemed to tense up and look slightly disapproving. He was obviously trying hard to hide it, but Harry could tell he was one of those people who were prejudiced against Slytherins.

But he was trying, so Harry said nothing.

They mostly spoke about Harry and what he'd missed in her life. Sirius also confessed to being the sender of the Firebolt.

At ten to eleven Dumbledore returned to his office just as Sirius was beginning to tell Harry a story about her parents.

Shortly afterwards Amelia Bones and two aurors floo'd into the office.

"Mr. Black, we will be taking you to a holding cell in the ministry until your trial. The only visitors allowed are legal representatives, no others." Madam Bones said. "Your trial is scheduled for July 28th If you do not have a lawyer we will provide you with a list of public defenders so you may select one. Do you understand?"

"Yes." Sirius said with his head held high as the aurors shackled him. With a nod at Harry, he let himself be led away from Hogwarts.

-x-

Once Sirius was gone the headmaster dismissed Harry and she immediately headed to her dorm to write to Tom about recent events.

She spent a good half-hour writing out what happened over the last two days for Tom to read. One she finished she anxiously waited for him to notice she had written to him. She spent a good twenty minutes waiting before he started to reply.

_You stupid little girl, _he wrote. Harry flinched. _You could have been killed. I suppose the werewolf professor is the reason you asked for my opinion on werewolves?_

_Yes._

_I'll do my best to make sure your godfather is proven not guilty._

_Thank you._

_It was good that you made him make a vow. Otherwise he likely would have eventually received guardianship._

_Eventually?_

_Right now he's not completely healthy. They'd likely want him to recover more from Azkaban first._

_Oh. I see. That makes sense._

_And brat?_

_Yes?_

_Next time be more careful._

_Yes, Tom._

_-_x-

Later that day Harry searched the castle for her friends. Figuring they were most likely in the library she went there first. She eventually found the quidditch team (minus George Gibson), Hermione and Pansy sitting in a corner as far away from Madam Pince as they could get.

"Harry! Did you hear?" Hermione burst out as soon as she saw her jade eyed friend.

"About what?"

"Professor Lupin resigned this morning." She told Harry.

"What? Why?" Harry demanded.

"Snape found out he forgot to take his Wolfsbane last night and told the Slytherins he's a werewolf." Pansy explained.

"I can't believe Dumbledore let a werewolf teach in a school full of children. What if someone got bit?" Marcus shook his head.

"He was taking Wolfsbane—" Hermione started but was cut off by Marcus.

"Yeah, and he forgot. Someone could have been killed last night." Marcus said. "I'm not saying he's a bad person. Just that he shouldn't have ever been near the school on the full moon. It's just too dangerous, even with precautions."

"You make a good point." Hermione conceded.

"I'm going to go see him. He was friends with my parents after all." Harry announced.

She walked towards the library's exit. She made her way to the defence classroom, but found that it was empty when she entered. She turned to leave when she heard a noise coming from the back of the classroom. Further investigation revealed that there was an open door she had not previously noticed. Presumably it led to Professor Lupin's office. She walked towards it and heard Lupin say "Come in, Harry" as she approached.

"How did you know it was me, sir?" she asked.

"Ah well, I suppose since I'm no longer your professor I can show you." Lupin pointed to his desk. Harry walked over and followed his line of sight to a piece of parchment lying on the desk.

"What is that—a map of Hogwarts? And those dots—"

"Are people, yes. This is the Marauder's Map. Your father, Sirius, Pettigrew and I made it." Lupin explained. "It shows where everyone in the school is. We lost it to Filch in out last year of Hogwarts, but I found it in possession of the Weasley twins and confiscated it."

"Wicked... you managed to make this?" Harry breathed.

"Yes. And I believe it is now yours." Remus smiled and handed it to her.

"Wow, really? Thank you so much professor."

"Ah, ah. I'm no longer your professor. Call me Remus. Or Mooney if you prefer."

"Er... Alright. About that—"

"My mind is made up. My secret is out as well as the fact that I forgot my Wolfsbane." Remus looked away guiltily. "I could have killed you last night. I cannot stay. Besides, Sirius will need me when he's free. Azkaban is hard on a person."

"But you're the best defence professor we've ever had!" Harry protested.

"Thank you, Harry." Remus smiled sadly. "But it's best that I leave. Keep in touch though, yes?"

"Sure." Harry nodded. "Then I guess I'll let you get back to your packing."

"Thank you. I will write."

"So will I."

-x-

Gossip ran wild as the end of term approached. The story of Peter Pettigrew's survival and Sirius Black's upcoming trial spread like wild fire. Everyone knew about it even before the Daily Prophet article. The quidditch team (even Gibson) ended up acting as bodyguards for the trio of girls to keep other students from pestering them for information about Sirius Black.

Finally the last day of term was upon them. Harry packed up all her things, put Hank in her box and helped Pansy pack as well. Once they were done they sat in the common room waiting for the quidditch team.

They emerged one by one over the next several minutes. Once the entire quidditch team was all there they walked to the entrance hall to wait for Hermione. They didn't have to wait long and once she arrived they walked through Hogwart's doors and climbed into the waiting carriages pulled by the thestrals.

"You'll have to keep in contact, Marcus." Harry said will a sly glance at Hermione. "Hermione and I will want to hear how your NEWTs went."

"Of course I'll keep in contact with my surrogate sister and her best friend." Marcus grinned.

Harry, Pansy, Hermione, Marcus and Gabriel climbed out of the carriages when they arrived at Hogsmeade station. They waited for the rest of the team and boarded the train together. Bletchley and Gibson left to find their own friends while the remained quidditch players joined the trio in a compartment. The seven of them barely fit in it and it was rather cramped, but no one minded.

"Who's going to be quidditch captain next year?" Draco asked to break the silence. "Adrian, Gabriel, Marcus and Bletchley are all finished with Hogwarts."

"Probably Harry." Marcus answered. "She has seniority over you and Gibson."

"Me?" Harry was surprised. She hadn't really thought about it much.

"Yeah, you. If you need help with things just owl me for advice." Marcus grinned.

The rest of the trip passed quickly. At one point Daphne Greengrass walked by and it looked like she would have bugged the trio but didn't because of the quidditch players. When the sweets trolley came around everyone except Pansy and Hermione loaded up They spent their time daring each other to eat different Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans and laughing when someone got a gross one. Once, Marcus convinced everyone that the earwax beans were caramel and Adrian got a nasty shock when he tried one.

When the train finally arrived in London Harry gave each member of the team, minus Draco, a hug and promised to write. Hermione also gave everyone except Draco a hug, though Harry was certain she only did so to hug Marcus.

"Hogwarts won't be the same without you guys." The dark haired girl sniffled.

"Ah, don't cry. We'll see each other again. Sooner than you'd think, too." Adrian patted her back.

"S-sorry. It's just. I don't know, strange to think you won't be there with us next year."

"I know what you mean. It's the same for all of us." Marcus said and turned to Draco. "You take care of the girls, you hear me?"

Draco nodded solemnly.

"Hey!" Harry puffed up indignantly. "We aren't helpless girls who need a man's protection!"

Pansy and Hermione nodded in agreement.

"Sorry, sorry. Didn't mean to imply that at all." Marcus quickly apologized. "Just want someone, male or female, watching out for you."

"Well, alright then." Hermione said and looked at her watch. "I've got to go. See you later, everyone!"

"Me too." Pansy said and followed Hermione out of the compartment.

"Do you guys want to meet Tom?" Harry asked suddenly.

"Sure." Marcus shrugged. "Why not?"

Adrian and Gabe nodded in agreement, but Draco politely declined. Which was okay since she was mostly talking to the older boys.

"Let's go then." Harry dragged her trunk and Hank's box off of the train with the three boys in tow.

She looked around the crowded platform until she saw Tom's distinctive blond hair. "This way." She said and motioned for the boys to follow her.

"Tom!" she cried as she threw herself at him. He caught her and spun her around twice before putting her down. She grinned up at him. "I brought my quidditch teammates. This is Marcus Flint, Adrian Pucey and Gabriel Gonson."

Tom shook each of their hands. "A pleasure." Tom said politely. "I'd like to thank you for taking care of Harriet during the school year."

"It's been a pleasure." Marcus smirked. "Both taking care of Harry and meeting you, Mr. Riddle."

"Uh, Tom? I think we better get going, Hank needs out." She turned to the quidditch team. "Bye guys! I'll write."

"Alright, brat." Tom nodded at the boys. "I'm sure we'll meet again."

Tom and Harry walked over to the apparation point and disappeared with a crack.

-x-

"You mentioned you mastered the patronus charm." Tom commented on the eve of Sirius's trial. They had just finished eating dinner and Harry was clearing the table.

"Oh, yes." Harry said as she put down the plates. "Would you like to see?"

"Please."

Harry pulled out her wand and thought of a happy memory. "Expecto patronum!"

A silver crow flew out of her wand. Tom stared at it with an indescribable look on his face. "Interesting." He said.

"What is?" Harry asked. Instead of answering Tom too cast the spell. An identical animal flew out of the tip of his yew and dragon heartstring wand.

"They're the same." Harry said in surprise. "Is that common?"

"I wouldn't know. Perhaps you should ask your werewolf. He seems the type to know." Tom suggested.

"I'll do that." Harry cancelled the spell and Tom did too soon after her. Harry moved to the couch where Tom was sitting and sat down next to him. They sat in silence for several minutes.

"Sirius's trial is tomorrow." Harry finally said. "I hear Pettigrew's is the day after."

"That is correct." Tom nodded. "I have received permission to bring you along to the trial tomorrow."

Harry's face lit up. "Really?"

"Yes, and to Pettigrew's as well. They both start at nine 'o'clock and I have to be there by eight, so you best not stay up too late tonight.

"Fine!" Harry got up to go set out an outfit for the next day but stopped. "What do I wear?"

"One of your moderately formal dresses would be best."

"Black or green?" Harry asked. She had a style of dress in mind, but she had that particular style in two colours.

"Black."

"Thanks for the help, Tom." She walked over to him and lightly pecked his cheek. She then practically ran to her bedroom with a flaming face. She didn't see the pleased smirk on Tom's face or hear his next words.

"It's almost time."

-x-

"Sirius Black, you have been brought before the council of magical law to answer charges relating to the murder of thirteen muggles and supporting the dark lord, Voldemort. How do you plead?" Amelia Bones said imperiously.

"My client pleads not guilty." A small red haired man said. His name was Christopher Winters, a half blood. He was the public defender Sirius had chosen to represent him. Sirius himself sat in a chair in the centre of the room, bound to it in chains.

"Very well." Madam Bones tilted her head. "We shall begin with the questioning.

"Mr. Black, please describe the events of October 31st 1981 through November 3rd 1981."

"Well you see, on Halloween I went to visit James and Lily Potter. When I got there I found the house in shambles. I noticed Hagrid was there and he was holding Harry in his arms. I begged him to give me Harry, since I'm her godfather, but he refused. It was then that it hit me what happened. James and Lily were hidden by the fidelius charm, so Wormtail—that is, Pettigrew— who was secret keeper, must have betrayed them—"

"Mr. Black, others seemed to be under the impression _you_ were the secret keeper." Madam Bones interrupted.

"Yes, see, that was all part of the plan. I was the decoy, while Peter was the real secret keeper. We switched at the last minute and didn't tell anyone." Sirius clarified.

"Do you have proof you were not the secret keeper?" Cornelius Fudge, the minister for magic, asked.

"It is not my client's job to prove he was not, but rather your job to prove he was." Winters stated calmly.

"Yes, yes. Very well. Black, continue."

"Right where was I? Oh, yes. I spent the next few days hunting down the traitor—Pettigrew. When I finally caught up to him he started screaming that I betrayed James and Lily. Before I had the chance to say anything, he cut off his finger, blew up the street and turned into a rat to get away. It really hit me then, what happened to James and Lily. What the situation looked like. I got hysterical and started half crying, half laughing.

"Then ministry personnel showed up and took me away. In my hysteria I kept saying I killed James and Lily, because I felt it was my fault for suggesting Peter be the secret keeper. Next thing I know I'm in Azkaban without a trial." Sirius explained to the entire courtroom.

He was relentlessly cross examined, but his story stayed consistent. Eventually, they brought in Pettigrew and began questioning him about the events of that night. They asked him about being an illegal animagus, and he vindictively shared that Sirius was one as well, as well as why he had hid as a rat for twelve years if he was innocent. Pettigrew kept to the story that Sirius was the secret keeper and death eater, but not many looked convinced.

Harry watched the trial with a strange sort of detachment until a thought occurred to her. She leaned over to Tom's ear and began hissing in parseltongue so no one else could understand her. "_Why don't they just use veritaserum to get the story? Or view their memories of the night_?"

"_Truth serum and memories are not fool proof_." Tom began in parseltongue. "_Memories can be modified and one tells the truth as they believe it. This is an issue if they modify their own memory of the events. They may have committed a crime, but genuinely believe they didn't. Occlumency can also be used to get around the effects of the potion and a small percentage of the population are immune to veritaserum. About three percent._"

Tom took a deep breath before continuing. "_It can help your case, but it's not the end all. They likely will be using it eventually._"

A half hour later Tom was proven to be correct.

"Mr. Black. Are you willing to testify under veritaserum?"

"My client is willing." Winters announced after Sirius nodded.

"Then Mr. Larson, pleases administer the serum." Madam Bones commanded a small, ageing man.

Once the serum took effect they asked Sirius to repeat his story. It was identical to the first time he told it.

"Mr. Pettigrew, are you willing to testify under vertiaserum as well?"

"Yes, ma'am."

They administered the serum to Pettigrew and asked him to also repeat his story. To everyone's surprise, he also told the exact same story as before.

Murmurs broke out in the courtroom. Harry gaped at Pettigrew. Sirius paled. Tom frowned.

"_You see dearest_?" Tom hissed to Harry. "_Some people can beat the serum. I suppose that Pettigrew is one of them."_

"_What does this mean for Sirius?_" Harry hissed back.

"_It means his statement under veritaserm is worthless, as is Pettigrew's. There is no way to determine which of them is getting around the serum._"

-x-

In the end it was Sirius's word against Pettigrew's. People seemed to be more on Sirius's side than Pettigrew's, if only because of Pettigrew's flimsy excuse for being a rat for twelve years. Apparently he was so traumatised that he did it to escape reality.

When it came time to vote on Sirius's guilt about forty percent of the Wizengamot voted guilty and sixty percent, which was largely made up of Tom's allies, voted not guilty, as they felt it wasn't proven beyond reasonable doubt that Sirius was guilty.

Sirius walked away a free man, his stay in Azkaban keeping him from being punished for being an illegal animagus, though he did still have to register.

The next day was Pettigrew's trial. Harry decided not to go, as she felt it would largely be redundant. She had seen everything she needed during Sirius's trial.

Tom came home from Pettigrew's trial grim faced. Harry immediately knew what had happened..

"They couldn't prove it was him, could they?" Harry asked. Tom took a seat next to her in the living room.

"No, Harriet, they couldn't. There is simply no way of knowing who was lying—there is no evidence for either side and no other witnesses." Tom pinched the bridge of his nose. "On the other hand, he was an illegal animagus. They got him for that. Six months in Azkaban."

"That's it?"

"That's it."

"At least Sirius is free." Harry sighed.

"Yes, but it will be difficult for him." Tom said. "The public will be split on if he did it or not."

"I never thought of that." Harry looked ill. "Poor Sirius."

"Indeed." Tom put his arm around Harry's waist and she leaned into his shoulder.

They fell asleep like that not much later.

-o-

AN: Alright, who saw that coming?

Veritaserum not being used in court as definite proof is canon, as is the fact that some people can get around it. I firmly believe that there was no way to prove who did it—Sirius's wand was snapped (at least in this fic, I can't remember about canon) and Pettigrew used his for several spells afterwards, so that's out. Witnesses were muggles and obliviated. It's impossible to tell who was telling the truth, and so it's impossible to prove either of them guilty.

I know I said there would be friction with Sirius, and there will be, but Harry needs to get to know him first. At the moment she's excited to have someone who's "family."

Harry's patronus mimics Tom's, not the other way around. I chose a crow for many reasons. Here's some copypasta explaining why:

"Throughout history, the crow has been associated with both positive and negative symbolic meanings. The most common are:

Life magic; mystery of creation

Destiny, personal transformation, alchemy

Intelligence

Higher perspective

Being fearless, audacious

Flexibility, adaptability

Trickster, manipulative, mischievous

Other traditional meanings associate the crow with bad omen, death, and dark witchcraft. The crow also carries the power of prophetic insight and symbolizes the void or core of creation."

I have the next chapter about two thirds written out by hand. Hopefully it won't take long to finish it.


	21. The Quidditch World Cup

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 21: The Quidditch World Cup

-o-

"Ticket's to the world cup?!" Harry squealed "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"You are most welcome, dearest." Tom smirked. "I already invited your friends for you."

"Pansy and Hermione?"she asked to which Tom nodded.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Harry repeated. She then threw herself at Tom. "You're the best, Tom."

"I know." Tom agreed cockily. "Come on, you're meeting Sirius in twenty minutes."

"Ah! You're right!" Harry rain into her room and quickly got dressed. It was her fourteenth birthday and she had plans to visit Sirius who was recovering from his stint in Azkaban at the wizarding hospital, St. Mungo's. Several minutes later Harry ran out of her room.

"I'm ready!" Harry called as she exited her room several minutes later. She was wearing a pretty light green dress that matched her eyes. She wanted to look nice today for Sirius. She knew he wasn't one for dressing up, but she was and so she did.

Tom nodded and grabbed her wrist. He pulled her out of the apartment and past the wards. The duo disappeared with a crack.

They reappeared in the lobby of St. Mungo's Hospital. Tom dropped Harry's wrist and motioned for her to follow him as he walked up towards the welcome witch.

"We're here to see Sirius Black." He said.

"Right, first floor, room one-oh-nine." The welcome witch said boredly after checking the records.

"Thank you." Tom tilted his head in acknowledgement.

Tom led Harry through the double doors and up a flight of stairs. They then stepped through another set of double doors and walked down the hallway until they reached Sirius's room. Harry knocked on the door and opened it when a familiar voice called for her to come in. Her companion elected to wait outside.

"Fawn!" Sirius grinned. "It's so good to see you!"

"It's good to see you as well, Sirius." Harry replied. "How are you?"

"Ah, well enough. I should be out of here soon. The dementors didn't do much damage to me according to the mind healer." Sirius said. "I'll still have to see her weakly though when I'm released."

"Well, if it's necessary for you to get better..." Harry trailed off awkwardly.

"Anyways, how are you, birthday girl?" Sirius winked. "The big one-four!"

"I'm well enough. Tom got me tickets to the quidditch world cup. Top box!" She told her godfather excitedly.

Sirius shifted awkwardly and glanced at the door. "That was nice of him."

"Wasn't it?" Harry beamed. Harry went on about how her friends would be going to and how excited she was to see her first professional match. Sirius joined in more eagerly once the topic shifted to quidditch in general and away from Tom. He got more and more animated as the topic shifted to his school days and adventures with his friends.

"Man, we got those Slytherins good, the slimy gits. Oh, not you, Fawn. You're obviously the exception..." Harry frowned at her godfather but he ignored her and continued talking. "You be careful around your housemates. You can never trust a snake. Slytherins know loads of dark magic, so you have to be on the lookout for attacks, especially from kids of death eaters..."

The more Sirius talked the less she liked what she heard. He seemed to be of the opinion that all Slytherins (except Harry) were evil and kept telling her about the "pranks" him and her father pulled on them. It sounded less like a laugh and more like bullying to Harry. She said as much, but Sirius dismissed her concerns. He said that it was all good because they only targeted people who deserved it.

After a half hour of listening to his stories and assurances that she was different from the other Slytherins, Harry had enough.

"I'm sorry; Sirius, but Tom's probably getting really bored waiting for me. I should go." She said with false regret.

"Oh, okay." Sirius's face fell. Harry stood up from her seat and Sirius followed suit. He moved to put his hand on Harry's shoulder, but she flinched away from his touch.

Sirius looked heartbroken.

"Sorry. I just, after—I don't like being touched—" by strangers, she mentally added. "—it's not personal."

"Right. Sorry. I'll keep that in mind." Sirius drew back. "I'll see you soon?"

"Sure." Harry smiled weakly. She exited the room and found Tom leaning on the wall outside Sirius's room. He stood up straight when he saw Harry emerge.

"Done already?" He inquired with a raised eyebrow. Harry only wished she could do that.

"Yeah. I'll explain why at home." She promised.

Once they arrived home Harry flopped down on the couch and sighed.

"He hates Slytherins." She told Tom. "Except for me. But he kept talking about Slytherins like they're all evil. I mean—no eleven year old is evil. Unless they're a psychopath, maybe... but psychopaths can't help it..."

Tom frowned. "Did you tell him to stop?"

"No, I didn't want to start a fight."

"Next time, do so." Tom instructed. "If this leads to a fight, stand your ground. He sees himself as better than blood purists because he isn't prejudiced against muggleborns, but like many who feel the same as him, he is against all Slytherins and so called dark magic without understanding anything."

"Alright. I'll try to." Harry promised.

The rest of Harry's birthday was more pleasant. She spent the day talking with Tom in the living room with Hank curled up beside her. They discussed school and Harry's plan to start studying chemistry. Tom promised to find Harry a good textbook to learn from.

Around five Tom started to cook dinner and Harry was left alone with her thoughts.

From the little time spent with Sirius she learned several things. He did care about her. He didn't like Slytherins. He was a bully and hadn't matured enough to realise it. He seemed to be a muggle lover and hated "dark" magic. Finally, he was a Dumbledore supporter.

In short, she was everything he was against.

-x-

Several days later Tom and Harry were practicing occlumency when Tom noticed something strange in Harry's mind. He pulled out of it and frowned.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked.

"Let me into your mind. Don't try to clear your mind or push me out. I saw something... peculiar for a moment." Tom commanded. Harry nodded in acquiescence.

"Legilimens!" Tom gently moved through her memories, skipping past the normal ones and looking for even a glimpse of what he had seen earlier. After several moments he found it. It was buried in the back of Harry's mind, obviously unnoticed. It started with memories of intense pain, the death of Lily Potter, then James Potter. Tom immersed himself in the memories, watching the actions of his other self play out in reverse order. He saw the creation of five horcuxes, including the diary. He saw who Voldemort's most loyal servants were and learned all of his plans up until that night in Godric's Hollow.

But the most important information gleaned was that Harriet Lily Potter was his horcrux.

"Wha—what was all that?" Harry asked in an unsteady voice, her hands cradling her head. "How did that get in my head? Tom, what's going on?"

Tom himself was shocked and stared blankly for a couple seconds before composing himself.

"It would seem you are dearer to me than I previously thought." He began. "When my other self attempted to kill you, I believe a part of his soul broke off when the curse backfired and clung to you. The scar is likely caused by part of my soul entering your body."

"You mean... I'm a horcrux?" Harry asked hesitantly.

"I believe so. It's probably why you can speak parseltongue." Tom speculated. "You see, a wizard or witch's soul is their magic. Or rather, the source of it. Since my soul is housed inside you, you gained the innate abilities of my magic.

"So I have part of you inside me..." Harry blushed as soon as she realized what she said. "I-I mean..."

"Yes. You contain a part of my soul." Tom smirked. "I am no more than ever glad I decided against killing you all those years ago."

"Yeah. So am I." Harry deadpanned. Tom merely chuckled.

"It is very fortunate you retained all the memories of te soul piece you carry. I learned much about my other self's plans and goals. I also learned what objects are my soul anchors. Yes, this is a most fortunate turn of events..."

-x-

The week before the cup Pansy and Hermione came to stay with Harry and Tom, though Hermione's parents believed them to be staying at the Parkinsons' manor. Mai and Oliver Granger were still wary of Tom and didn't want her to be alone with him and her friends for long periods of time. Tom, Harry and Pansy were more than willing to help with the charade. Tom and Harry met the Grangers at the Leaky Cauldron. Harry and Hermione made a show of flooing to the Parkinsons and waiting for Tom to tell them the Granger's left and it was safe to return.

Hermione felt bad about lying to her parents but knew that their dislike and suspicion of Tom was unfounded. Well, mostly. He had no interest in Hermione, but she had the feeling he had one in Harry. She also knew that if he did he wouldn't act on it without Harry's consent, and well, Harry would obviously consent.

The girl's spent the week hanging out in Diagon Alley and Harry's bedroom. Since there was only one bed the girls had Tom enlarge it so that it was more than big enough to fit all three of them. The girls then transfigured blankets and pillows to make a nest on the bed. They spent their nights curled up in it, telling ghost stories by wandlight. They stayed up until the wee hours of the morning and slept until noon.

Harry cooked for her friends and Tom that week and her friends greatly appreciated her culinary skills. Tom too enjoyed her cooking, even going so far as to say it was better than his.

One night a couple of days before the match Tom returned from the ministry just as the trio of girls was sitting down to eat.

"Dinner looks lovely, Harriet." He said as he discarded his outer robe, revealing slacks and a dress shirt underneath. He rolled up his sleeves and took a seat in his usual spot.

"Anything interesting happen at the ministry lately?" Hermione asked politely.

"As a matter of fact, yes." Tom took a sip of water and paused for dramatic effect. "Preparations for the Triwizard Tournament, which will be hosted at Hogwarts this year. I've been meaning to mention it to you, Harriet, but it just slipped my mind."

"Liar!" Harry accused playfully. "You just didn't feel like sharing until now."

Tom tilted his head and raised an eyebrow, but remained silent.

"Really?" Pansy said. "Oh, this is so exciting! There hasn't been a tournament in over a century!"

"Er... what is this tournament thing anyways?" Harry asked with a light blush. She felt like she was the only one who didn't know.

"It's a tri-school competition." Hermione began to explain. "A champion to compete is selected from Hogwarts, Durmstrang and Beauxbatons. The tournament has three tasks. The winner receives a prize, usually a fair amount of galleons, and their name is added to the list of winners in Hogwarts, A History."

"That is correct. This year the prize is one thousand galleons."

"Wicked!" Harry breathed. "What are the tasks like?"

"They vary, but they tend to test magical strength, cleverness, resourcefulness and strength of character." Hermione quoted from Hogwarts, A History.

"I want to enter!" Harry announced.

"Really?" Pansy asked. "But people have died in the tournament!"

"Oh... Really?" Harry looked at Tom.

"Yes, but there are precautions this year." Tom said. "One of which is that the tournament is off limits to those who are not of age."

"No fair." Harry pouted. "So I can't compete?"

"I didn't say that." Tom said mischievously. "It is not impossible, but you shall receive no help form me."

"So... There's a way, but I have to figure it out on my own?" Harry asked for clarification.

"Yes, there is. And yes, you must. If you can't get yourself into the tournament by yourself, you are not worthy to compete."

-x-

The day before the quidditch world cup finals the girls packed their overnight bags. When they were finished they met Tom in the dining room. He was sitting at the table, his own bag by his feet and a collapsed tent lying on the floor. Plenty of food and water were put out for Hank to live on while they were gone.

"Are you ready?" he asked. The girls all nodded. Tom reached down, grabbed his bag, slung it over his shoulder and grabbed the tent. He held out his free hand for Harry to take. "You two, hold hands with each other and Harry."

Hermione quickly grabbed Harry's free hand and one of Pansy's. As soon as they were all linked together they disappeared.

They reappeared in a clearing. Tom quickly pulled them away from it and down to a nearby campsite. He dropped the tent and turned to the girls.

"You three set up the tent. I'll find the campsite manager and pay." Tom walked off down a worn path and the girls got to work as he had ordered.

Pansy was of no help setting up the tent the muggle way. She just kept making things worse so Harry and Hermione forbid her from helping and opted to do it on their own. Between the two of them they managed to get it set up in a little over fifteen minutes. Hermione had actually been camping in a tent before and had an idea of what she was doing.

Tom returned not long after and sent the girls to get water from the tap marked on the map he received. As they walked through the campsite they saw all sorts of strange tents and oddly dressed people.

"Really, now. Could they be any more obvious?" Pansy commented.

"I know." Harry nodded. "I can't believe some of these tents."

"And the clothes!" Hermione complained. "It's not that hard to dress like a muggle."

"I know!" Pansy agreed. "Muggles actually have such cute clothes. I can't believe people coordinate them so badly."

"You like muggle fashion?" Harry asked.

"Yes. I keep up with all the latest trends. Muggles have the best accessories." Pansy informed them.

They passed a bunch of tents covered in shamrocks and further along they found the Bulgarian camping area. The tents were all covered with posters of a surly looking fellow with thick black eyebrows.

"Who is that?" Harry wondered aloud. Pansy and Hermione shrugged. They were equally clueless.

"Really, Harry? And you call yourself a quidditch fan. That's Viktor Krum. Bulgaria's seeker." A voice from behind them said.

"Marcus!" Hermione said before she even turned around. "I didn't know you'd be here."

The three girls turned and Saw Marcus standing about four metres behind them. He was carrying two empty buckets, obviously on his way to get water too.

"Hello, Hermione. I didn't expect to see you here." He said lightly as he approached them. "I thought quidditch wasn't your thing?"

"It's not." She admitted. "But this is a once in a lifetime opportunity..."

"Ah, I gotcha." Marcus nodded. "How are you three? Where are you camped out?"

Harry told him they were well and Hermione gave him directions to their campsite as they walked to the water tap.

"Ah. Adrian, Ares, Gabe, Jason and I are all here together. We would have invited you, Harry, but when I asked Tom he mentioned he already had tickets for you." Marcus told them.

"Ares and Jason?" Harry perked up. "I haven't seen them in ages."

"Our tent is near yours. You can come see them later."

"Great! I can introduce Tom to them, too. Did he tell you where we'll be sitting?"

"No, where?"

"Top box." Harry smirked.

"No joke?" Marcus gaped. "And I thought we had good seats..."

They chatted all the ways to the tap and back. They stopped by the girls' campsite to drop off the water and grab Tom. They found him deep in conversation with two older men. One was tall and thickly built with greying hair and the other was short and slender with a comb over.

"Ah, Harriet." Tom said. "come over here. I'd like to introduce you to Walt Ozman and David Farley."

"Hello, sirs." Harry said politely, eyeing Ozman first before turning to Farley. "Any relation to Gemma and Jason Farley?"

"Ah yes, my niece and nephew." The shorer man said.

"The three of us were just discussing the Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew trials." The taller man said.  
"A sham we couldn't prove which one of them was guilty and had to let both go."

"Yes, a shame." Harry agreed. "Especially since my godfather was the innocent one. But Pettigrew has been seen as a hero for years while Sirius has been seen as a criminal. It's no wonder people believed Pettigrew when he said he faked his death because he couldn't deal with the pain of losing his friends."

Hermione, Pansy and Marcus stood behind Harry and shifted awkwardly, which brought attention to them.

"Ah, and who are your friends, Miss Potter? Do excuse my rudeness in not asking sooner." Farley said.

"I'm Marcus Flint. This is Hermione Granger and Pansy Parkinson." Marcus pointed to each girl as he introduced them.

"Ah, Bruce's boy!" Ozman said. "I haven't seen you since you were a little thing... your father and I had a bit of a falling out some fifteen years ago..."

"I see." Marcus shifted his weight from one foot to the other.

"Anyways, it was nice to see you, Tom, but it seems your little friends want you."Ozman chortled and started walking away. Farley soon followed.

"I don't like them." Harry voiced what everyone was thinking.

"Neither do I, dearest, but they are valuable political allies." Tom said. "I'd be remiss to alienate them."

"Fine... So according to Marcus most of the old quidditch team is here. Do you want to come meet them? Please?" Harry widened her eyes and jutted out her lower lip.

"No need to look at me like that, brat." Tom said affectionately. "Though I thought I already met them at the station."

"Yeah, but not Ares and Jason—they finished school a year ago and weren't at the train station." Harry rolled her eyes at Tom.

"Well then, lead the way." Tom made a sweeping gesture with his hand and bowed his head. Harry giggled.

Marcus then led them down the rows of tents until they arrived at the quidditch team's lot.

"Oi! Losers, look who I brought." Marcus called. A few seconds later four boys emerged from a tent that appeared to be normal if not for the fact that it appeared only big enough for two.

"Harry!" Ares grinned. "Long time, no see. Same to you, Granger, Parkinson."

"Good to see you, Ares." Harry jabbed her thumb in Tom's direction. "This is Tom Riddle. I've told you about him, remember?"

"Ah, the famous Tom Riddle." Jason slung an arm over Ares' shoulder. "It's pleasure. Harry here has spoken highly of you. I'm Jason Farely."

"A pleasure, Farley, Merritt. Harriet has spoken of you both fondly." Tom said politely.\

They spent the rest of the evening chatting. When the sky darkened and the air cooled they lit a fire (the muggle way, with matches) and roasted marshmallows.

Eventually Harry, Hermione and Pansy began to tire. Their eyes drooped and their yawns grew frequent as the night wore on and two in the morning approached.

"I think it's time I got these three to bed." Tom told the younger boys.

"But Tom—" Harry began to protest.

"No buts, brat. You're tired." Tom glared mildly.

"Well, see you later, Harry, Hermione, Pansy. Nice meeting you Tom." Ares called. The other young men repeated the sentiment.

The walk back to their tent was short. When they arrived Tom ushered them inside. Walking into the tent was like walking into an extravagant cabin. There was a kitchen with a full set of appliances, a small dining area, and a small main area with comfortable looking couches. In the back there were three doorways. The middle one led to a bathroom and the doors on either side led to a room with two twin beds.

"Hermione, Pansy, you can take the room on the left. Harry and I will be in the room on the right." Tom told them. "I'll wait outside while you change, Harry."

Harry was intimately aware of how close Tom was to her that night. She had to fight down the urge to crawl out of her own bed and into his. Instead she settled for listening to the steady sound of his breathing.

Tom was a peaceful sleeper. He did not snore, nore did he toss and turn. If it weren't for the slight rise and fall of his chest and the steady sound of him breathing Harry would think he was dead, he was that eerily still.

Eventually tiredness overcame her and she fell asleep. Unlike Tom she was a restless sleeper. She tossed and turned all night, muttering occasionally.

When Tom awoke the next morning at seven he quickly dressed and checked on the other two girls. They were sound asleep, much like Harry. He went back to his and Harry's room and made his bed. When he was done he sat on it and simply watched Harry sleep.

His mind drifted. He was only brought back when he heard Harry call his name. His immediate thought was that she had awoken, but he quickly saw that wasn't the case.

"Tom..." she mumbled. "Don't go..."

He smirked. She was dreaming about him, which was pleasing. It meant that even in her sleep he was on her mind.

Like she was often on his.

He didn't know why. Yes, they were similar, but it didn't explain his... fascination with the young girl. It was their differences that truly intrigued him. She was kind and caring like he only pretended to be. She cared about other people and easily made friends. She was compassionate and loving. She was all those things to many people, but he was only kind, caring and compassionate to her.

He wanted her. He had for a long time. Not as she had been, no. He hadn't been interested in her physically as a child. He wanted who she would become. He wanted to corrupt her innocence and tarnish her shine. He wanted to ruin her. He wanted to make her dark and deadly. He wanted her to depend on him. He wanted to be her everything. He wanted to be the centre of her world.

He would be, there was no doubt. Soon, she would be his to do with as he pleased. She would give him everything, and he would give her the same in return.

-x-

Tom woke the girls at noon. They quickly dressed, ate a simple brunch, and went off to rejoin the former Slytherin quidditch team.

The boys were barely up and dressed when Tom and the girls arrived at their lot.

"Stayed up late after we left, huh?" Pansy teased. The boys sheepishly nodded and Marcus told them they had stayed up until five in the morning playing truth or dare.

"So what did you make each other do?" Harry asked curiously. The boys, however, refused to say because "what happens in truth or dare stays there." The three girls pouted at this, but didn't prod the boys any further. Instead they changed the topic to the upcoming game.

"Ireland is a shoe in." Jason said factually.

"Maybe, but it'll be close. Ireland has good chasers, but Bulgaria has Krum. Even if their chasers are horrible." Marcus pointed out.

"I say Ireland wins but Krum gets the snitch." Adrian declared.

"That sounds about right." Ares agreed with a nod.

"I dunno guys..." Pansy began in an attempt to join the conversation. "Why catch the snitch if you're more than a hundred and fifty points behind?"

"Because you know you're going to lose anyways." Jason said. "Unless Krum catches the snitch right away Bulgaria is going to lose."

They chatted about the game for quite awhile before they were interrupted by a man in black and yellow quidditch robes.

"Well, hello there Tom!" He called as he walked over. "Didn't expect to see you here. Thought you weren't much of a quidditch fan."

Tom smiled politely. "I'm not, but I'm here with Harriet, who is a big quidditch fan."

The man turned his gaze to Harry. "Well, blessed be, Harriet Potter. A pleasure to meet you. I'm Ludo Bagman, head of the department of magical games and sports and former professional beater."

"It's a pleasure, sir." Harry smiled thinly.

"So you roped Tom into coming, eh?"

"Actually, sir, Tom bought the tickets for my birthday. Top box seats." Harry bragged.

"Ah, I wondered what happened to those last four seats. Arthur Weasley did me a favour see, and I repaid him by giving him tickets for the top box, but were two short for his family."

"Oh. I see." Harry said awkwardly.

"Anyways I'll be up in the top box with you. I'm the commentator."

"Hopefully you're better than Lee Jordon." Marcus sniggered. Hermione shot him a glare and kicked him in the shin.

"Who?" Bagman asked.

"The Hogwarts commentator. He's really biased against Slytherins and in favour of Gryffindor." Harry explained.

"Well, no worries. I'm not biased towards either team. If the Wasp's were playing on the other hand..." Bagman trailed off and winked.

Harry forced a smile, as did the others.

"Anyways, does anyone want to make a little wager?" Bagman eyed Tom and the former Slytherin team hopefully.

"No, thank you, Ludo. Neither the girls nor I shall be betting. Their guardians would be most upset with me if I let them or set such an example." Tom declined.

"How about ten galleons on Ireland?"Adrian called. Ludo accepted the bet and wrote it down in a book he was carrying with him.

Marcus, Jason, and Ares also made bets with Bagman. Once he had written them all down and collected the gold, Bagman excused himself.

As the evening approached people came out with carts full of merchandise. Tom, Pansy and Hermione abstained from buying anything while Harry bought a green rosette that squeaked out the names of the Irish team and a green pointed hat. The boys also bought several souvenirs, including miniature Firebolts and miniature quidditch players.

A deep booming bong sounded. It was time to find their seats.

-x-

Harry and company climbed all the ways up to the top box. When they arrived they saw that it was already almost full.

"Draco!" Pansy exclaimed. "so good to see you!"

Draco turned and looked at the girls with a smile. "Hello Pansy, Harry, Granger. Face seeing you lot here."

"Tom got Harry the tickets for her birthday." Pansy explained. Her and Draco fell into easy conversation.

Harry surveyed th rest of the top box. She saw six redheads that could only be the Weasley family. She noticed the youngest son, Ronald, was absent. She also saw the minister for magic, a house elf sitting by an empty seat and a man she could only assume was the Bulgarian minister.

Harry eagerly waited for the game to start. Eventually Bagman cast sonorus and started talking. The game would begin soon.

He first introduced the Bulgarian mascots, a horde of veela. Harry watched in disgust as the men, except Lucius, Tom and the Bulgarian minister practically leapt out of their seats with dazed looks gracing their features.

The women were beautiful, she had to admit, but there was obviously some magic about them that affected the men so.

"_Why aren't you taken in like the rest of the men_?" Harry hissed to Tom.

"_Occlumency._" Tom hissed back. Harry nodded in understanding.

After awhile the veela stopped dancing and moved to the side of the pitch. The men in the crowd roared with disapproval and the women looked at their male friends and loved ones with disgust.

Next came the Irish mascots, leprechauns. The flew across the pitch like a green and gold comet before they separated by colour. A rainbow arced across the pitch connecting the two balls of light. The rainbow faded and the leprechauns formed a giant shimmering shamrock. It rose up and started flying across the stands. Gold fell from the sky like rain. The younger Weasleys began gathering it greedily.

"_Pathetic._" Tom hissed. "_It will disappear soon enough. It's worthless, the fools._"

Harry let out a hissing laugh in response, which earned her a few strange looks.

"Were you just _laughing _in parseltongue?" Draco asked incredulously. "You made this weird hissing noise."

"I, uh, I suppose? How'd you know if it just sounds like strange hissing?"

"Your posture, the look on your face..."

"Oh. Well. Yeah. I guess I was." Harry shrugged and looked away. As she turned her head she saw the Bulgarian minister scrutinizing her. He smiled when he realized she noticed him looking and turned away.

When the game finally started she was captivated. She cheered and booed when appropriate and marvelled at the skill of the players. She wondered if she would ever be that good.

She gasped when Viktor Krum pulled off a flawless Wronski feint and decided that was something she had to practice and perfect.

The Irish chasers were on a whole new level to Harry. She could hardly believe people could play like that. They made the plays Marcus made the team spend hours practicing look effortless.

When Krum finally caught the snitch Harry leapt out of her chair and cheered. The game ended one-sixty to one-seventy in Ireland's favour.

"Well, we fought bravely." The Bulgarian minister commented.

"Indeed. That Krum really is something else." Tom said. "He might give you a run for your money, Harriet."

"Nuh-uh! I'm nowhere near Krum's level!" Harry protested with a blush.

"Ah, you are Harriet Potter, yes? You are also a seeker?" the minister inquired.

"Ah yes. Pleased to meet you, sir."

"The pleasure is mine, Miss Potter. What would you say to meeting the players of my team?"

"I'd love to! But... Can my companions come too? There's four of us, sir." Harry asked.

"Of course, of course. Come, let us go."

-x-

Meeting the Bulgarian national team was definitely a moment powerful enough to fuel a patronus.

The players were equally excited to meet the famous Harry Potter, though apparently news hadn't made it to them that she was a girl.

The players discussed the game with Harry in detail while her companions watched on, amused to see how animated Harry was acting. When Harry told them she had a Firebolt they ended up discussing the merits of Firebolts with birch twigs versus those with hazel twigs.

They were in the middle of saying their goodbyes when they heard it. Screams and the sound of people running.

"Wands out." Tom commanded. Pansy and Harry immediately pulled out theirs but Hermione seemed to have lost hers.

"My wand is gone!" she cried.

"Harriet, Pansy, protect Hermione and run." Tom ordered sternly.

"What's going on?" Harry asked fretfully.

"I don't know, but it seems dangerous." Tom took a deep breath. "Run to the forest and hide. Let's go!"

With that they exited the Bulgarian team's tent. When they emerged they saw a huge group of people wearing black, hooded robes with silver masks. They were levitating and torturing four people, two of them children.

"Oh no!" Harry gasped.

"Death eaters. Fuck." Tom cursed. "What are you waiting for? Run! I need to go help."

Without further ado Pansy grabbed Harry and Hermione's hands and pulled them towards the forest. Suddenly the sky was illuminated by a glowing skull with a snake coming out of its mouth. The dark mark. The girls kept running and eventually came to a clearing full of people casting stupefy.

"Stop! Stop!" someone yelled. "that's my son!"

As they approached they saw three of their Gryffindor classmates being questioned by a ministry official with Arthur Weasley trying to protect them.

"Barty, they're kids, Barty." A witch said. "They'd never be able to—"

"What's going on?" Harry asked. Suddenly about twenty wands were pointed at Harry and her friends. "Woah! Hey now! I'm just a kid!"

"What are you doing here?" The man called Barty demanded.

"Running from the death eaters." Pansy snapped. "What else?"

"Ron, Dean, Seamus, where did the mark come from?" Mr. Weasley asked, taking the focus off of Harry and her friends.

"Over there!" Dean pointed in a specific direction. "There was someone behind the trees... they said something. "mars mord" or something like that."

"Oh, stood over there, did they?"Barty said turning to glare at Dean. "Said morsmordre, did they? You seem to know an awful lot about the spell—"

"Because he heard it being cast!" Ron shouted. "Besides, he's muggleborn!"

But aside from Barty, who Harry belatedly realized was Bartemius Crouch, no one believed it was the children. The group of witches and wizards were all pointing their wands in the direction Dean indicated.

A man marched into the forest to search for the perpetrator and came back a few minutes later carrying a house elf. Harry recognized it as the one from the top box.

"Winky? This—this can't be—" Crouch said. He shook his head in disbelief and went to search the forest himself.

"No one there but the house elf." The man who had checked previously said. "He won't find anything."

And indeed, Crouch returned empty handed.

"But a house elf couldn't cast the dark mark, it requires a wand!" Mr. Weasley pointed out.

"Yeah, and she had one. See?" A wand was held out.

"That's my wand!" Hermione cried.

"Oh? Is that a confession?" Crouch asked, latching on to the potential possibility that it was someone other than his house elf who cast the dark mark.

"I'm a muggleborn! I would never—"

"Relax, Crouch. The elf must have found the wand somewhere. Let's revive her and ask."

And so they did. And all the elf would tell them was that she didn't do it and picked the wand up from the ground. In the end Crouch freed the elf and Hermione was horrified by the way it was treated.

Soon after things were settled tom came into the clearing to collect the girls.

"You are all unharmed?" he asked. The girls nodded in response.

"Then I shall take you home. Grab on." He held out his hand for Harry to take and she grabbed it and Hermione's hand. Pansy latched on to Hermione's arm and the four of them disappeared with a crack.

They reappeared in Diagon Alley, at the apparation point. They walked to the flat in Actu Alley in silence. When they arrived Tom sent the girls to bed and floo'd the Parkinsons to let them know of the night's events and the girl's safety.

Once he was done he sat down on the couch and pimcjed the bridge of his nose. It had been stressful helping evacuate the premises and attempting to disable the death eaters. It seemed everyone aside from himself was incompetent. He was the only who managed to subdue any death eaters. He managed to capture four, Addison Gibson, Geoffrey Crabbe, Michael Goyle and James Meade. He was relieved to see they were all death eaters he had no interest in converting to is side and as such were expendable.

He closed his eyes and sighed.

He played his part, earning much respect and praise, and got on the good side of the Bulgarian minister. Perhaps it wasn't such a bad day.

-o-

AN: Uh... oops? Sorry it took so long to update. Iv'e been very depressed over the atrocious ending of Naruto. All my notps happened and well... there wasn't any Team Seven togetherness. Sad face. So I was too upset to focus on writing. Sorry. Though I plan to do a NaruSaku fic after this one. Anyone interested?

Hopefully next chapter comes out sooner.

A reminder that faking his death doesn't prove Wormtail killed the muggles or betrayed Lily and James, as a few people commented on that.

A lot of this chapter was taken from canon. Sorry about that. It was a longish chapter though, at 6K words.

Thanks for all the support! I love you guys~

Eliza


	22. New Teacher, New Cause, New Guests

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 22: New Teacher, New Cause, New Guests

-o-

Harry climbed onto the Hogwarts express with her feather light trunk in one hand and Hank's box in the other. She was earlier than most students so she took her time choosing a compartment. Pansy and Hermione had yet to arrive. Harry decided on a compartment towards the front of the train so her friends could find her easily. She spent the next twenty minutes reading a book—fiction, for once—before her friends arrived. It was twenty to eleven when Hermione burst into the compartment. She cheerily greeted Harry and asked about the book she was reading. Just as she was promising to lend it to Hermione when she was done, Pansy entered the compartment.

When Pansy realized what they were talking about, she asked Harry if she had read the part where the main character was accepted into the Potions Guild. Harry replied that no, she hadn't, and sarcastically thanked Pansy for the spoiler.

"I didn't think you liked reading much." Hermione commented to Pansy.

Pansy sniffed. "I like reading just fine. What I don't like is studying. I love fiction. Particularly romance novels."

"Oh, I prefer mysteries." Hermione said.

"Ooh! I love a good murder mystery." Harry agreed. "But I like action and adventure stories best."

They discussed which books they liked best and thought the other girls should read. By the time the sweets trolley came around all three girls had a long list of books to read, by both muggle and magical authors.

Eventually, the conversation turned to boys.

"I had a great conversation with Draco at the world cup." Pansy said. "We didn't finish though, so we started writing each other. I get a letter every two to three days!"

"That's great!" The dark haired girl and brunette chorused.

"I'm so glad he got over that crush on you, Harry. Maybe now he'll notice me that way!"

"I hope so." Harry glanced at her bushy haired friend. "What about you, 'Mione?"

She went pink. "What do you mean?"

"How are things with a certain former quidditch captain?" Harry asked slyly.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Hermione avoided her friends' gazes.

"Oh come on, 'Mione. You like Marcus!"

"Do you really?" Pansy asked curiously.

"Maybe." Hermione admitted.

"Ooh!" Pansy squealed. "How cute."

"So have you heard from him since the world cup?" Harry prodded.

"Yes... we write biweekly." Hermione informed them with a blush.

"As in twice a week or every other week?" Pansy asked.

"Twice a week." Hermione clarified.

"So what do you like about him? I mean no offence to him but he's so... and his teeth..." The blonde girl trailed off.

"Are so crooked they'd give your parents nightmares." Harry quipped.

"... I wish I could deny that. But there is just something about him. He's so big, he makes me feel safe. And he's smart and driven. He's interested in muggle technology and wants to make it work with magic. He's always willing to help me with our advanced work and doesn't care that I'm a muggleborn. I don't know. I just like him."

"Fair enough." Pansy turned to Harry. "What about you and Tom?"

"Er... what?" Harry blushed.

"Oh, come on. The whole world knows you like him." Pansy rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, so?" Her friends just stared at her. "Okay, fine. I think maybe he likes me back."

"Oooh! Do tell!" Pansy encouraged. Hermione nodded vigorously.

"Well, he never looks at women. Or men for that matter. He's been more touchy feely with me this summer and well... he's always doted on me, but he's been particularly nice lately. I've caught him staring at me a few times... I dunno. Just this vibe I get. You know?"

"Well, here's to hoping, right?" Pansy said.

"Right!" Harry and Hermione chorused.

-x-

"The elves really go all out, don't they?" a first year boy commented at the welcoming feast.

"Elves? You mean house elves made this?" Hermione asked.

"Well of course." A second year that looked vaguely familiar said. "Where did you think the food came from? Or most of the cleaning was done by?"

"I—well, I never really thought about it." Hermione pushed her plate away.

"You full?" Pansy asked as she munched on some fried chicken.

"No. I refuse to eat something made by slave labour." The brunette declared.

"... When you put it that way..." Harry mumbled and pushed her plate away as well.

"Oh come on, Harry. You never had a problem with it before." Pansy accused.

"Yeah, but I never really thought about it before either. Hermione makes a good point."

"They _like_ it though." Pansy protested. "They enjoy cooking and cleaning."

"That doesn't mean they don't deserve pay or healthcare or vacation time—" Hermione was acut off by a laugh.

"They don't want any of that." The second year boy from earlier said. "They're perfectly happy the way they are."

"Because they're brain washed!" Hermione cried. "If they were taught from infancy that they deserved those things instead of that they don't, then they would want it!"

"I agree. If you're told something often enough, you believe it." Harry added.

"Okay, whatever. But not eating isn't going to help the elves. You'll just starve." Pansy pointed out. Harry and Hermione conceded the point but still, their appetites had disappeared.

"Who're you anyways?" Harry asked the second year. "You look familiar."

"Kratos Merritt. I'm Ares' little brother." He answered.

"Oh, nice to meet you. I think Ares mentioned you a few times." Harry said.

"The pleasure is mine." Kratos grinned.

Their conversation was interrupted when Dumbledore stood up and began making his beginning of the year speech. Chaos broke out briefly when he announced that quidditch was cancelled, but most everyone was appeased when he announced that it was because the Triwizard Tournament would be hosted at Hogwarts, at least until he mentioned the age limit.

Harry scowled at the mention of the age limit, but remained quiet. Tom said there was likely a way for her to compete, and she was determined to find it.

-x-

Harry's first class the next morning was Transfiguration. It was rather boring as McGonagall spent most of the class lecturing on things Harry had already studied ages ago. She decided to start bringing her diary to class with her so she could write Tom instead of remaining bored.

McGonagall seemed to notice her lack of attentiveness and singled her out with a question about what she had been covering. Harry had to ask McGonagall to repeat the question as she hadn't been paying attention. McGonagall pursed her lips and asked her the question again.

Harry smirked. It was a question she could easily answer, and did so, going so far as to expand on the answer beyond what McGonagall had covered.

McGonagall blinked in surprise, but nodded at Harry and continued with the lecture.

Meanwhile, Harry doodled over her textbook and occasionally added notes in the margins.

At the end of class McGonagall called for Harry to stay behind. Harry hurriedly packed up her belongings and made her way to McGonagall's desk at the front of the classroom.

"Yes, Professor?" she asked politely.

"Miss Potter, Would I be correct to assume that you have studied ahead, well beyond the class?"

"Yes, Professor. Hermione Granger and I have been studying ahead since first year. We're currently just finishing off the fifth year material."

"In all your classes?" McGonagall raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, ma'am." Harry nodded.

"I see. Very well then. I will forgive you for not paying attention in class so long as you use the time productively, that is, to study, and you don't interrupt the learning of your other classmates. Is that clear, Miss Potter?"

"Yes ma'am." Harry repeated with a nod.

"Very well then, off you go. You have care of magical creatures next, I believe? I shall right you a pass so you don't get in trouble for being late..."

Harry took the note ?and thanked the transfiguration professor.

Care of magical creatures was a catastrophe. Hagrid had brought out these strange creatures that he called blast ended skrewts. He didn't seem to know much about them and to be using the class to learn about them himself rather than teaching the students anything.

Several students ended up with small burns from the skrewts and complained loudly about the creature.

Harry wasn't very fond of the creatures herself but decided that considering the skrewts were likely an illegal crossbreed she could use it to get Hagrid fired. She decided to bring a camera to class in the future so she had proof she could send to Tom, so he could take care of everything.

Harry's net class was after lunch and it was arithmancy. The lesson was enjoyable even though Harry already knew the content. Professor Vector was simply an amazing professor who made the class interesting. They did a few class worksheets that Harry whizzed through and were given no additional homework.

Harry had a free period after arithmancy and spent it beginning her chemistry studies in the library. Hermione joined her at the end of the period and was slightly irked that her friend had started without her. None the less, she took out her copy of the chemistry textbook Tom had procured and began studying.

Not long after Hermione arrived, she pushed aside her chemistry book and notes, and sighed.

"What's wrong?" Harry inquired.

"I just can't focus." Hermione sighed once again. "I keep thinking about house elves. I did some research at lunch and found out they're forcefully bred like _dogs_ and then sold to families. They have absolutely no rights and are forced into a binding contract."

"That's horrible." Harry whispered. "I wonder how they can be so..."

"Happy with their lot?" Hermione suggested.

"Yeah. They don't seem to mind being forced to cook and clean with no pay or breaks or what have you and having no rights. Why are they okay with it?" Harry wondered.

"The contract, maybe?" Hermione suggested. "Perhaps there is a compulsion aspect to it?"

"Maybe, but why don't they escape before they're sold into the contract then?"

"Maybe compulsions are cast outside of the contract? Or both in the contract and out of it?"

"Would make sense. Is there a way to test for compulsion webs?" Harry furrowed her brow.

"Ask, Tom? If there is he would likely know."

"I'll do that now." Harry pulled out her lilac diary and began writing. She and Hermione waited with bated breath for at least fifteen minutes before they received an answer.

_Yes. _Tom wrote. _The spell is rather complex, but it will show any webs of compulsion cast on the subject._

_How complex? _Harry wrote back.

_NEWT level. Next Hogsmeade weekend I shall show you. I'm too busy to come any sooner._

_What about getting rid of the compulsions?_

_That is post-NEWT level. It is something very delicate and requires precision, lest you permanently damage the subject's mind._

_Oh. Can you teach me that too? _Harry bit her lip as she wrote. _It's important._

_Yes, but you will have to wait. Why the interest, dearest? Do you believe you or someone you know is under a compulsion web?_

_House elves. Hermione and I believe they're under compulsions to serve witches and wizards without any rights._

_Of course. House elves. I should have guessed after your rant the other day. Anyways, I must go. I'm in the middle of revising a bill for an ally of mine. Goodbye, dearest._

_Goodbye Tom. _Harry wrote with a smile.

"Well?" Hermione asked, her eyes wide.

"There is a way to check and Tom will teach me next Hogsmeade weekend. It's a NEWT level spell."

"How long will it take to learn?"

"Dunno. The spell to remove them is even more complex though. Post-NEWT level.

Hermione's face fell. "Well... we'll learn."

"We will." Harry nodded.

"I think we should start an awareness group. The Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare. Or SPEW."

"Spew, Hermione?" Harry deadpanned.

"No! S-P-E-W!" the brunette witch glared at her friend.

"Still... that's a bad acronym. What about Elfish Rights Activists? Or ERA for short?" Harry suggested.

"That does sound better." Hermione grudgingly admitted.

"I know." The jade eyed girl smirked. "We should find out more before recruiting though. Like if elves are actually under compulsions. We don't want to spread false information."

"Good plan." Hermione nodded. "Should we test for compulsions on Hogwarts' elves when we know how? Or what?"

"That's probably the best and easiest way." Harry agreed with a nod.

"Alright. Then ERA has an action plan." Hermione declared.

"And so the first ERA meeting comes to a close." Harry grinned at her friend.

They could do this.

-x-

According to the upper year Slytherins, Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody was a decent professor. Considering the general opinion of him wasn't exactly high in Slytherin, this was high praise. Rumours from other students who had already had him agreed that he was a good teacher and knew the material well.

It was Harry's first class with him and she managed to snag a seat up front. She pulled out her textbook, _The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self Protection_ and patiently waited for Moody to enter the classroom and begin class.

The first thing he did when he entered was to tell them to put away their books. The students did so excitedly.

"I heard from Professor Lupin. You've dealt with dark creatures, it seems. But you're behind—very behind—on curses." The man said as he paced the front of the classroom. His peg leg made a thunking noise as he walked. "I've got one year to get you up to snuff on curses—"

"You aren't staying?" A dark skinned boy asked. Harry thought his name was Blaise Zabini.

"That's right, lad." Moody confirmed. "I'm only here as a favour to Dumbledore. After this year it's back to a quiet retirement.

"Anyways, so curses. They come in many strengths and forms. Now, according to the ministry, I'm only supposed to show you what illegal dark hexes look like when you're in sixth year. But Professor Dumbledore has a higher opinion on your nerves. He reckons you can cope, and I say the sooner you know what you're up against, the better. How are you supposed to defend yourself against something you've never seen before? A wizard who is about to put an illegal curse on you isn't going to tell you what he's about to do! You need to be prepared. You need to be alert and watchful.

"Now... do any of you know which curses are most heavily punished by wizarding law?"

Almost everyone in the class raised their hand, including Harry. Moody pointed at Harry. "Potter, go."

"There are three of them, sir." She began. "They are called the unforgiveables. The first is the imperius curse, which gives on complete control over the subject. The second is the cruciatus curse, or the torture curse. Finally, the third is the avada kedavra, the killing curse. This spell cannot be blocked. There is only one known survivor."

Moody stared into Harry's jade eyes for a moment. He was vaguely reminded of the colour of the killing curse.

"Correct, Miss Potter." He turned away from her. "However you left out that the imperius curse can be fought. I will be teaching you how later, but not everyone can do it."

"Now! A demonstration!" He declared. The students gaped. A demonstration of an illegal curse? "On a spider, of course. Watch and learn. Imperio!"

The spider started doing some sort of acrobatics. A few people giggled, but silenced when Moody glared at them. Harry was not amongst them.

"Think it's funny, do you?" he sneered. "What would you think if it was you?

"Total control." He said quietly. "I could make it do anything, jump out a window, drown itself, kill its own mother..."

The class shifted nervously.

"Years ago there were a lot of witches and wizards controlled by the imperius curse. The ministry had trouble figuring out who was under the curse and who acted out of their own free well."

Moody pointed his wand at the spider again. "For our next demonstration we need to enlarge the spider to really see what's going on. Engorgio! Crucio!"

The enlarged spider began to writhe in pain. Several students c ringed and looked away.

"we get the point!" A girl hollered from the back of the class.

"Very well." Moody ended the curse. "Time for the grand finale. Avada Kedavra!"

A sickly light shot out of his wand and hit the spider. It died as soon as the spell touched it.

"Avada Kedavra is a curse that needs a powerful bit of magic behind it—you could all get out your wands and cast it at me, but I doubt any of you would succeed." Harry almost snorted, but held herself back.

"Now if there's no counter curse, why am I showing you? _Because you've got to know_! You don't want to find yourself in a situation where you're facing it. Constant Vigilance!" he roared. Several people jumped in surprise.

"Miss Potter, you seem to know a lot about the unforgiveables. What is the penalty for using one on another human?"

"A life sentence in Azkaban, sir." Harry promptly answered.

"Correct." Moody nodded.

They spent the rest of the class taking notes.

Classes passed as usual for the next few weeks. The next class that was as exciting as their first defence lesson was the one where Moody announced he would be placing the imperius curse on the students.

"But that's illegal!" Harry blurted as soon as Moody announced it. "What right do you have to use it on us?"

"If you'd rather skip today's lesson, then fine. There's the door!" Moody pointed towards the door. Several students stood up and began to file out, including Harry.

"Scared, Potter?" Daphne Greengrass sneered as Harry walked by. Harry stiffened but continued walking. She would not let Daphne goad her into staying.

"No, just smart enough not to let strange men curse me." She muttered. Daphne glared in response.

Harry had no reason to stay for this lesson. Tom had already trained her to resist the curse the previous summer. She had picked it up rather quickly, too. Tom had been impressed, to her delight.

Staying for that class would only advertise the fact that she was now immune. And if people were aware of her immunity, it would take away any advantage she may have if someone ever tried to use it on her.

Harry almost took Slytherin's passage directly to her common room, but decided she could use the walk. She walked past the school's bulletin board and aw a new notice was posted. In a week the delegates from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang would be arriving. Class would end a half hour early.

When Harry came to the entrance of the Slytherin common room she hissed "_open"—_she never bothered learning the actual password anymore—and entered.

She moved to the corner of the common room and flopped down on a chair. Hank ran up to her and laid down by her feet. She pulled out her diary and began writing to Tom. She told him about Moody putting the imperius curse on students and mentioned the earlier lesson on the unforgiveables from a few weeks ago. Tom replied roughly ten minutes later.

_That's peculiar, _He wrote to Harry. _From what I've heard about him he abhors so called dark magic. That he would perform it is... out of character, to say the least._

Harry furrowed her brow. _Are you sure? No one else seems to think so._

_He does have a reputation of pushing the boundaries and being prepared. Perhaps it's not as out of character as I believe. I'm hardly the authority on the man. I've never even met him._

_I'm surprised he got permission to cast the curse on us though._

_As am I._ Tom agreed. _Perhaps Dumbledore isn't as soft as I'd thought._

_Do you think the ministry approved it?_

_I can check. _Tom offered. _I'll let you know tomorrow evening._

_Thanks Tom._

_Think nothing of it, dearest._

-x-

The week passed quickly. Tom found out that Moody did have permission to use the imperius curse on the students, though only the seventh years and only with their permission. Tom and Harry opted to remain silent on the matter, as it was something they could use to their advantage in the future.

It was the day the students from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons would be arriving. Harry and the rest of the school were on the front lawn waiting for them.

Students were speculating on how they would arrive when someone shouted and pointed to the sky.

A carriage pulled by large, winged horses came into view. Minutes later they landed on an unoccupied stretch of land. The headmistress was the first to disembark. She was rather large; likely part giant, much like the Hogwarts game keeper.

Dumbledore welcomed them warmly and they joined the crowd in waiting for Durmstrang to arrive. Students kept glancing at the sky, but it was the lake they should have been watching. A large ship emerged from the water and Harry wondered how it got in the lake in the first place. As far as she knew there were no connecting rivers or anything. Perhaps an underground river? In the end she shrugged and let the thought go.

Dumbledore greeted the Durmstrang headmaster a bit less warmly than he had the headmistress of Beauxbatons. Harry figured it was because the headmaster, Igor Karkaroff, was a former death eater. At least according to Tom.

After greeting the foreigners Dumbledore led everyone back into the castle. Once she made it to the Great Hall, Harry made her way to the Slytherin table. She saw the Beauxbatons students taking a seat at the Ravenclaw table while the Durmstrang students stood around awkwardly, unsure of where to sit. After several moments they finally made their way to the Slytherin table. Malfoy, who was seated next to Pansy who was across form Harry, looked rather smug when Viktor Krum sat down next to Harry.

"Hello, Harry." He said. "It is lovely to see you again."

"Same to you, Viktor." Harry smiled. "How have you been since the world cup?"

"Well enough. Perhaps we can have a seeker's game now that we are both here." Viktor suggested.

A seeker's game was where two or more seekers competed to see who could catch the snitch first. In other variations, several snitches were released, and whoever caught the most, won.

"That sounds like fun." Harry agreed. "We'll have to have one sometime."

Before Krum could respond Dumbledore started speaking.

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen, ghosts and—most importantly—guests. I have great pleasure in welcoming you all to Hogwarts. I hope your stay is both comfortable and enjoyable.

"The tournament will be officially opened at the end of the feast. I now invite you all to eat, drink and make yourselves at home."

Once Dumbledore sat down, food appeared on the tables as usual. There were, however, a greater variety of dishes than usual, Harry noticed. They were several dishes that were unmistakably foreign.

Harry spent the meal chatting with Viktor (who asked after Hermione), Draco and Pansy while trying a few of the new dishes.

Part way through the meal two new guests arrived—Ludo Bagman and Bartemius Crouch.

Once the meal was finished Dumbledore stood once more.

"The moment has come." He smiled. "The Triwizard Tournament is about to start. I would like to say a few words of explanation before we bring in the casket, just to clarify the procedure which we will be following this year. But firstly, let me introduce Mr. Ludo Bagman and Bartemius Crouch.

"Mr. Crouch and Bagman have worked tirelessly over the last few months on the arrangements for the Triwizard Tournament. They will be joining myself, Professor Karkaroff, and Madam Maxime as the panel of judges.

"The casket then, if you please, Mr. Filch."

The Hogwarts caretaker approached Dumbledore carrying a large wooden chest encrusted with jewels. It looked extremely old.

Dumbledore went on to explain how the tournament worked, and Harry listened attentively, eager to find out how the champions of each school were selected. When he explained about the Goblet of Fire and the age line, Harry grinned. She knew how to get her name into the Goblet. Her grin turned to a devious smirk as she thought of her rather simple plan.

She waited until two in the morning before taking out her invisibility cloak and the Marauders' Map. No one was watching the Goblet. Even the teachers were in their quarters.

Harry pulled on the silvery cloak and put the map in her pocket. She made her way to the Great Hall via Slytherin's passage. She checked the map once more before she exited the passage, and found that the Great Hall was still empty. She pulled a piece of parchment out of her pocket as she approached the age line. Once she was perhaps only half a metre away she stopped and pulled out her wand. She smiled at how easy it was.

"Wingardium Leviosa." She whispered. The piece of parchment with her name and school rose from the palm of her hand. She guided it over the Goblet of Fire and cancelled the spell. It fell in.

She waited several moments to see if the Goblet would reject her entry, but it didn't.

Harry smiled the whole way back to her dorm.

-x-

Harry spent the next day smirking superiorly. When Hermione joined her and Pansy in their favourite empty classroom she sighed.

"You did it, didn't you?"

"Yup." Harry nodded.

"How?" Hermione inquired curiously.

"She won't say." Pansy scowled.

"Don't want it getting around until after the champions are chosen." Harry explained.

"We wouldn't tell." Pansy protested.

"But someone might overhear."

"Whatever, Harry." Pansy pouted. "be that way."

"I shall." Harry stuck her nose in the air, which caused Hermione to giggle.

The spent the rest of the day relaxing and speculating about whom else would put their name in. When evening approached they eagerly made their way to the Great Hall. Once inside Hermione split off from Harry and Pansy to sit at the Gryffindor table. Pansy took a seat next to Draco at the Slytherin table and Harry sat across from them.

The feast seemed to last forever. Harry figured it dragged on so much because she was so eager to find out if she was chosen.

Finally, Dumbledore stood and the food disappeared.

"Well, the Goblet of Fire is almost ready to make its decision. I estimate it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called I would ask that they come up to the top of the hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber, where they will receive their first instructions.

Dumbledore took out his wand and gave a great sweeping motion with it. Most of the candles were extinguished, plunging the room into semi-darkness.

Suddenly, the blue-white flame of the Goblet turned red. A piece of parchment was spit out.

"The champion for Durmstrang," Dumbledore read. "Will be Viktor Krum!"

The announcement was met with thunderous applause.

The Goblet's flame turned red once more and spit out a second piece of parchment.

"The champion for Beauxbatons... is Fleur Delacour!"

The room once more burst out into applause.

Harry bit her lip in anticipation. Hogwarts' champion was next.

When Dumbledore caught the next parchment to come out of the Goblet, he paused and frowned.

"The Hogwarts Champion is Harriet Potter."

Harry held back a whoop of excitement and rose from the Slytherin table. The hall was silent for a long moment. Then, the Slytherin table burst into applause while the other tables seemed upset, judging by their calls of "she's a cheat!" and booing.

Harry ignored them and made her way to the chamber where the other champions were gathered.

Viktor looked surprised to see her, as did Fleur Delacour.

"What are you doing here?" Fleur asked. "This room is for champions."

"I'm the Hogwarts champion." Harry said.

"But you are too young!" Fleur protested. "Just a little girl!"

Harry bristled at being called a little girl, but before she could say anything, Bagman, Crouch, Dumbledore, Maxime and Karkaroff entered the room.

"Miss Potter," Dumbledore began. "May I ask how you managed to get your name into the Goblet under both Hogwarts and a foreign school?"

"Er—what?" Harry blinked. "What are you talking about?"

"Your name, girl. It came out of the Goblet twice!" Karkaroff sneered.

"What? How?"

"That's what we'd like to know." Maxime said.

"I put my name in last night, that's true. But I only put it in once, under Hogwarts." Harry said slowly.

"Are you sure, Miss Potter?" Dumbledore asked calmly.

"Yes. I'm sure. I have no idea how it could have come out a second time."

"Lies!" Perhaps you didn't think you'd come out as the Hogwarts Champion so you befuddled the Goblet to choose a fourth competitor!" Karkaroff accused.

"Okay, first of all, how would I get the Goblet to believe there should be four champions? That would have to be very advanced magic. I'm only a fourth year. Second, if I wasn't chosen as the best Hogwarts has to offer, I wouldn't want to compete." Harry said with a sneer. "Seems like someone else wanted me to be guaranteed to compete for some reason.

"Why would someone else want you to compete?" The Beauxbatons champion asked.

"No clue. Can we get on with this though?" Harry said impatiently. "It doesn't matter, I'm competing either way."

"I suppose you are correct, Miss Potter. However, I am curious. How did you get past my age line?" Dumbledore asked.

"Oh, easy. I just levitated the parchment into the cup from outside the age line." Everyone stared at her. "What?"

"It was the easy?" Karkaroff turned to Dumbledore. "You didn't think to prevent something like this? You must be going senile."

"Now, now." Ludo Bagman chuckled nervously. "No one else saw this loop hole either, let's not put this all on Professor Dumbledore."

"Can we just get on with it?" Harry said again. Viktor and Fleur nodded in agreement.

"Very well, Barty, would you like to do the honours?" Ludo Bagman said.

"Yes, yes... The first task is designed to test your daring, so we are not going to tell you what it is. Courage in the face of the unknown is an important quality in a wizard... very important.

"The task shall take place November twenty-fourth in front of the other students and the panel of judges.

"The champions are not permitted to ask for or accept help of any kind from teachers to complete the tasks in the tournament. The champions will face the first task armed with only their wand. They will receive information pertaining to the second task when the first is over. Champions are exempted from end of year examinations, save for standardized exams."

"Thank you, Barty." Dumbledore sais.

The champions were then dismissed.

Harry took the long way to the common room. Once she entered she was pounced on by a horde of her housemates. She sighed and ignored their questions as she shoved her way through them to her dorm. Once inside she grabbed her diary, quill and ink and pulled the curtains around her bed. She then cast spells to prevent people from opening her curtains.

She opened her diary and proceeded to tell Tom about the evening's events. He expressed concern that someone wanted her in the tournament, but had no idea who it could be. The y spent the night conversing until Harry fell asleep.

-x-

AN: Alright, so sorry for the wait. I will not give up on this story, even if I update slowly, until September 2015, because if my help permits it I will be starting university then, and since engineering is a very intense field of study I won't have time to write. But I plan to finish it before then. But just a heads up.

If you want progress updates on the latest chapter, feel free to bug me on my tumblr, tomriddleswhorecrux.

Parts of this chapter are taken directly from canon.

I hope you like what I'm doing with SPEW, or rather ERA. I wanted to do an original take on house elves. So far I've only seen people justify their enslavement, instead of condemning it.

What did you think of Harry's way of getting her name in the Goblet of Fire? Have you seen it done before?

Best,

Eliza


	23. The First Task

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 23: The First Task

-o-

When Harry walked into the Great Hall the next morning she was met with glares from the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs. She ignored them and walked to the Slytherin table with her head held high. She quickly ate some toast and jam. When she was done she took off for the abandoned classroom she often gathered in with Hermione and Pansy. Hermione was already there waiting for her.

"The Gryffindors are furious." Hermione said as soon as Harry walked through the door. "they're upset that not only did you get past the age line, but that the school champion is a Slytherin. They also think you entered your name twice because you didn't think you'd be chosen as the Hogwarts champion."

"Well, that's their problem." The jade eyed girl shrugged as she sat down on a desk. "I'm much more concerned with who wanted me in the tournament in the first place. And why, too."

"Well..." Hermione grimaced. "Maybe they want you dead. People have died in the tournament and you're just a fourth year. Maybe they thought you wouldn't be good enough for the tasks and end up getting killed."

"That's probably it." Harry nodded. "The question is, who?"

"Maybe someone who supports Voldemort?" Hermione suggested hesitantly.

"Like Karkaroff?"

"Maybe. Or a student who doesn't like that you killed Voldemort before they even had a chance to join him."

"So maybe an older Slytherin? Voldemort recruited heavily from Slytherin, and houses do tend to run in families..."

"Maybe." Hermione agreed as Pansy entered the room.

"Do you know what the task is?" Pansy asked as she too sat down on a desk.

"Nope. They said they won't be telling us. We'll just have to improvise."

"Or find out on your own..." Pansy smirked slyly

"No." Harry said. "I want to prove I can do it without cheating."

"How Gryffindor of you." Hermione teased.

"Yeah well, the hat considered it." Harry admitted.

"Really?" Pansy asked curiously.

"Yup." She popped the p. "It did."

"Well I guess I can see why." The blonde witch muttered.

After painting their nails and chatting for a few hours the three girls parted ways. Hermione went to study, Pansy went to find Draco, and Harry decided to write Sirius.

She felt slightly guilty because she promised to write him but it had been two months and she had yet to do so.

Harry pulled out the necessary supplies from her trunk and dipped her quill in the inkpot.

_Dear Sirius,_ she wrote. _I'm sorry I didn't write sooner, but I've been busy with classes. The workload is much greater than ever and I've been working on a new cause—house elves. That they're used as slaves is horrible and Hermione and I plan to work on changing that._

_In other new... Surprise! I'm the Hogwarts champion for the Triwizard Tournament. Yeah. I sneaked my name in. It was rather easy._

_We haven't been told what the first task is. Something about courage in the face of the unknown. I could probably cheat and figure out what it is, but I don't want to. I want to prove I can handle things without preparation or help. I know I can do this. Tom thinks I'm being stupid, but I don't care. When I do better than everyone else without cheating, he'll understand._

_It's like, it would be too easy to know what the task is beforehand, you know? No challenge._

_Enough about me. How are you? You're out of St. Mungo's, right? How has life been in the real world? Where are you living? How is Remus? Are you going to get a job? If so, doing what?_

_Sorry for not writing sooner,_

_Harry_

Once she was done she rolled up the parchment and tied a lilac ribbon around it. She then put away her quill and ink and made her way to the owlery, where she chose a plain brown owl to take the letter to Sirius.

Harry was still iffy about Sirius, but she figured she would still try to have a relationship with him. She didn't think it was completely his fault he was an unrepentant bully. From the sounds of things the teachers encouraged his behaviour instead of really trying to stop it. The Professors seemed to have found it funny, rather than seeing how humiliating it was for the victims. But since her dad, Sirius, Remus, and Pettigrew targeted Slytherins, few really cared.

Then Sirius was sent to Azkaban maybe four years after finishing school. He didn't have much of a chance to really grow up. Then with the damage from the dementors she wondered if he ever would. He seemed to fixate a lot on his memories of the past. It was obvious he longed for the days of his youth. He clung to the memories tightly and wouldn't let go, which made it harder for him to grow up.

Some the stories he told her were genuinely funny, involving harmless pranks and Harry liked listening to those stories. She wished Sirius would tell her more of them.

Harry heard back from Sirius the next day. His letter was addressed to "his deerest fawn," and he was proud of her for being chosen as the Hogwarts champion. He said he understood that she was busy with school and was glad she was doing well. He was living with Remus, who was also doing well. He didn't plan on getting a job since he already had more money than he needed and he doubted many people would want to hire him.

His letter also included a new story about her dad. He wrote about the time James scored twenty-four goals in a single quidditch game. Sirius said that after the war James wanted to play professionally.

Harry smiled at that. These were the kind of stories she liked to hear. The kind that made her want to build a relationship with her godfather.

She decided against writing him back right away and set the letter down by her breakfast. She then grabbed her copy of the Daily Prophet.

The Triwizard Tournament was front page news. Harry skimmed the article. It made no mention of her name coming out twice, but did speculate that Dumbledore was losing his edge if a fourth year managed to enter her name in the tournament. Harry snorted when she read that part. It gave a small description of each champion; Fleur's being the smallest as she was not famous, like Harry or Viktor.

Harry paged through the rest of the newspaper until Pansy was done breakfast. Once Pansy was done eating, the two girls made their way to class. They ignored the glares and whispers of their fellow students as they moved through the halls.

Classes weren't any better. All of the professors seemed to disapprove of her status as champion and were polite but cold towards her.

This treatment continued for several days. On Thursday however, things took a turn for the worst.

Harry was roaming the halls of Hogwarts alone that evening. Pansy and Hermione were not with her as she told them she needed some time to clear her head.

She turned a corner on the seventh floor, only to bump into a group of Gryffindors. She quickly apologized, but they only sneered.

"Well, well... What do we have here?" the leader, a tall, brown haired boy, jeered.

"Looks like a little cheat." Another added. There were five of them. They were all upperclassmen, probably sixth or seventh years.

"Whatever." Harry glared. She turned to walk away but one of the Gryffindor boys grabbed her roughly by the shoulder and spun her around. The other four had their wands pointed at her.

"Now, now. No need to leave." The leader grinned. It was not a friendly one. "Let's have some fun first."

"No thanks, I don't play with my inferiors." Harry taunted as she discreetly pulled out her wand. She opened her mouth to cast a spell but was disarmed before she even got the first syllable out. She didn't want to admit it, but she was a bit scared.

"Grab her!" the leader snarled. Two of the largest boys grabbed her by her arms. A third twirled her wand in his hand. Harry was vaguely reminded of the incident with Lockhart.

Harry struggled, but she was unable to escape her captors by physical means. They were just too much stronger than her. When they started hitting and hexing her—little things like the pimple jink, the stinging hex, making her teeth grow overly long and the like—Harry closed her eyes in concentration. It was hard to focus with the things being done to her, but she did her best to ignore the boys and their spells. Suddenly, the boys were thrown away from her and into the walls. She opened her eyes and they glittered furiously. Her wand flew into her hand. The boys scrambled to get up, but with a twist and jab of her wand they were forced back down.

"How dare you..." Harry growled menacingly. "How dare you do this to me!" With another wave of her wand she dispelled the hexes and jinxes, leaving behind only some cuts, bruises and red marks from the stinging hexes.

The boys finally managed to stand but Harry quickly disarmed them. She caught their wands and stuffed them in the pocket of her school robes.

"You wanted to have fun, hm?" She sneered. "Well, let's."

Harry danced away from the larger boys as they tried to physically grab hold of her. Spell after spell erupted from her wand. I n the end, only the leader remained conscious, the others had been stunned. Harry sent her final hex at the brown haired boy. The front of his robes became wet.

"Oh, so scared of a fourth year you wet yourself, huh?" Harry laughed. The Gryffindors face turned red, from anger or embarrassment she wasn't sure. Probably both. "You lot are just mad a fourth year was chosen to represent the school over you."

"Wait until we tell McGonagall about this!" The boy threatened.

"Tell her what? That you assaulted a fourth year and got your arse handed to you?" Harry tossed their wands on the floor. "I'm sure she'd be so _proud_."

With that, Harry turned and left. She made her way to the nearest bathroom. When she entered it, she was glad to see she was the only occupant. Good. No one would see how those Gryffindors had humiliated her.

She looked in the mirror and winced. Her face was slightly swollen from the stinging hexes and she had a black eye. She checked the rest of her body and found several small scrapes and bruises. She pulled out some makeup from her school bag and started covering up the redness in her face and the bruising with some foundation. She have healed them, but she hadn't bothered to study healing yet. That would definitely change. Especially since she didn't want to go to Madam Pomfrey and let her see how others had humiliated her.

She couldn't do anything about the swelling, but arranged her hair to hide most of her face. She put her makeup back in her bag and sighed. Pansy was smart to tell her to always carry her basic makeup in her bag with her at all times.

She looked in the mirror one last time and started to head back to her common room via Slytherin's passage. She swiftly made her way to her dorm, keeping her head down the whole time. Once inside she found Pansy reading a copy of Witch Weekly.

"Oh, Merlin, Harry!" Pansy exclaimed. "What happened to your face?

"Is it that bad?" Harry winced. She thought she had done a good job covering the bruising and redness up.

"Well, no. Just to me... But it's all swollen." Harry sighed in relief at that pronouncement. Pansy just noticed because she's so used to her.

"Good." The jade eyed girl said. "I covered up the worst of it."

"But what happened?" the blonde girl asked again.

"What happened is that five upperclassmen—Gryffindors—attacked me. I cancelled most of their spells, but I couldn't do anything about the injuries they left."

"Why didn't you go to Madam Pomfrey? Did you tell a professor?"

"No, I didn't tell a professor." Harry shook her head. "I took care of them myself. And I didn't go to Madam Pomfrey because I don't want to look weak."

"I get ya." Pansy nodded. "But you're going nowhere alone anymore. You'll have someone with you, probably me, at all times, you hear me?"

"Yes, Pansy." Harry agreed, if only to make her friend feel better.

"Good. I'll get Draco to stay with us too." The blonde nodded to herself.

"Things are good between you and him then?" Harry asked to divert the conversation.

"Yes!" Pansy squealed. "He's been really great."

"I'm glad. I wonder how Hermione's doing with Marcus."

"I don't know." Pansy shrugged. "I think she's still writing him."

"Yeah, she is. He mentioned it in the letter he sent me a few days ago." Harry said. "Well I'm going to take a shower and go to bed. Goodnight."

"Alright. Goodnight."

-x-

The next morning the swelling had gone down tremendously. Her face was still a little puffy, but it wasn't too noticeable. It just made her face rounder and younger looking. Harry covered up her bruising with makeup and in the end looked like she hadn't had a black eye or any bruises in the first place.

True to her word, Pansy didn't leave her side. Once Draco found out what happened to her, he too stayed by her side, though he was bit distant with Hermione.

The two Slytherins did an admirable job until halfway through potions when Kratos Merritt was sent to get her. Snape grudgingly let her go, and she was sure the only reason Pansy didn't insist on accompanying her was because she'd be with Kratos and most everyone was in class.

Kratos silently led Harry to the correct room. Once they reached it, Harry knocked and entered while Kratos left.

As soon as she entered the room Bagman informed her that she was here for the Wand Weighing ceremony and that the rest of the judges would be there soon.

Harry nodded dumbly. She decided not ask what that was so as to not reveal her ignorance.

Ludo Bagman then introduced a woman in magenta robes. Her name was Rita Skeeter and she was there to write a more detailed piece for the Daily Prophet.

"Do you mind if I have a word with you, Harry?"

"What for?" Harry asked suspiciously.

"Oh, just a small interview." Rita answered.

"...Okay." she agreed after a moment of thought.

"Excellent! Let's go somewhere a little quieter..." Rita led Harry to a broom cupboard.

"Now, you don't mind if I use a quick quotes quill, do you?"

"Actually," Harry said. "I do. Regular dicto-quill or no interview."

"Very well." Rita put away her quick quotes quill and pulled out a regular dicto-quill. "Well then, let's begin. Why did you decide to enter the Triwizard Tournament?"

"I wanted to prove myself to someone. That I'm more than just the Girl-Who-Lived."

"I see, I see. What do you think your parents would say if they were alive?"

"I don't know...Based on what I've heard about them, Dad would probably be proud, but mum would probably be very worried."

"Do you remember anything about your parents?" Rita peered over the top of her glasses.

"I remember my mum's death when dementors are near." Harry said. "She begged Voldemort—" Rita Flinched. "—to spare me. He told her to step aside, but she refused."

"How tragic." The reporter purred. "How do they think they'd react to your relationship with Mr. Tom Riddle?"

"... I'm not sure what you mean." Harry deflected, fighting back a blush.

"Well, the two of you are close, yes? Just how close? And how would your parents react to you being so close to a man his age?"

"Well, I—" Harry was cut off when Dumbledore opened the door to the broom cupboard they occupied. Harry sighed in relief.

"Ah, there you are Miss Potter." He ushered her out of the broom cupboard. "The ceremony is about to begin.

"May I introduce Mr. Ollivander? He will be checking that your wands are in good working order before the tournament."

Ollivander asked Fleur to step forward first. He assessed her wand and then cast the orchideus spell with it.

Next he called on Viktor. He assessed his wand and then shot birds out of it.

Finally, he turned to Harry.

"Ah, Miss Potter. One of my own creations, is it not?" Ollivander smiled at her. "Yes, holly and phoenix feather, eleven inches... How well I remember..."

He spent a long moment looking it over. When he was done doing so, he produced a fountain of wine from its tip.

Dumbledore started to dismiss them, but was stopped by Rita when she reminded him that the photos had yet to be taken.

She arranged the three champions so that Harry was in the middle and slightly in front of Fleur and Viktor. The two older champions towered over her small, five foot frame. It made her appear even younger than she actually was, and her slightly swollen face didn't help matters.

Several more photos were taken, including ones of each champion alone, each champion with their school's headmaster or mistress, and a group photo including all the judges. Finally, the photo shoot was done, to everyone's relief.

"Hey Viktor," Harry said as the reporter and photographer left. "Want to have that seeker's game tomorrow?"

"I would love to. Perhaps Miss Delacour would like to join us?" Krum turned to look at Fleur.

"I'm not much of a flyer, but I'd be willing to referee." Fleur offered.

"Thanks Fleur, that would be great." Harry beamed. "What time works for you guys?"

"Perhaps after lunch, at one 'o'clock?" The blonde witch offered.

"That works for me." Harry nodded. "Viktor?"

"It works for myself as well." The sole male champion agreed.

"Excellent. One snitch or multiple?" Fleur asked.

"Multiple." Harry and Viktor said in unison.

"Three or five?"

"Five." They said in unison again.

"Sounds good. I shall see you both tomorrow at the quidditch pitch." Fleur said. She smiled before leaving with Madam Maxime who had been waiting for her.

Krum excused himself soon after and Harry took off too.

-x-

They met the next day at the quidditch pitch as planned. Harry was dressed in her Slytherin quidditch robes while Viktor was wearing a blood red set. Fleur was bundled up like it was already winter in warm robes, gloves, a scarf, and a toque. Both Viktor and Harry were clutching their firebolts while Fleur held a whistle. Beside her was a box full of snitches.

Harry's friends were sitting in the Slytherin stands, grinning like maniacs. Aside from them, the stands were empty as no one else knew about the game about to occur.

"Alright. I will release five snitches. He or she who catches the most wins. You are to take off at the sound of my whistle, no sooner. I will wait two minutes after releasing the snitches before I blow the whistle. Are we clear?" Fleur had her hands on her hips as she went over the rules.

"Yes." Harry and Viktor said.

"Then I shall release the snitches." Fleur said. She bent down and opened the box by her feet. Five snitches fluttered out and took off in various directions.

Harry and Viktor mounted their brooms. After two minutes Fleur blew her whistle. The two seekers pushed off.

Harry ignored Viktor who was famous for tricking the other seeker and instead scanned the pitch. Upon seeing no telltale glint of gold, she started to circle the pitch. After several laps, she saw the sun sparkle off a snitch. It was closer to Viktor who had yet to notice it, he would reach it first if she took off at top speed towards it. Instead, she slowly made her way towards the snitch, acting like she was just continuing to circle the pitch. Once she was closer to it than Viktor, she pushed her broom to its top speed. Seconds later she grasped the snitch in her hand. First point to her. Fleur blew her whistle to signify her catch.

Harry released the snitch which flew down back to its box. Moments later, Fleur blew the whistle again. Viktor had caught a snitch as well.

The next twenty minutes were spent furiously searching for the remaining three snitches. Finally, Harry spotted her second snitch. She raced towards it, but Viktor had seen it as well. She was getting closer and closer to the snitch, but Viktor seemed to have the advantage. When she was only about three metres away the snitch shot off like a bullet. The change in direction caused both Harry and Viktor to take sharp turns. They chased the snitch as it weaved through the air. The two seekers were neck and neck as they approached the snitch. It took another turn, giving Viktor the advantage. Harry cursed. The snitch was a lost cause at this point, so she abandoned the chase and began looking for one of the last two snitches.

Fleur blew the whistle seconds later, just as Harry expected, but she paid it no mind. She had caught sight of the fourth snitch. This time she had the advantage when it came to the distance between her and the snitch, but even so, she pushed her broom to max speed. Finally, she grasped the small, elusive ball in her hand. Fleur blew the whistle once more.

Harry and Viktor were tied again, and one snitch remained.

The final snitch seemed to be the most elusive of all. Harry and Viktor started to get bored of simply searching for the snitch and several times tried to trick each other. Viktor managed to trick Harry twice, but she only managed to trick him once.

They searched high and low for the final snitch, but even an hour into their game it remained unseen. By now a few other students had noticed the seeker's game and had come to watch the famous quidditch player Viktor Krum face off against the best Hogwarts had to offer.

Harry was circling the pitch when the whistle blew once more. She cursed herself for not keeping Viktor in her range of sight and started descending.

Harry landed near Fleur seconds after Viktor did. The older girl smiled at Harry and Viktor and told them to shake hands.

They did so with friendly smiles upon their faces.

"Good game." Viktor said. Harry nodded in agreement.

It was indeed a good game.

-x-

The next fortnight passed quickly. Harry never went anywhere alone, always having Pansy, Hermione, or Draco by her side. She did well in all her classes and spent her free time practicing her spellwork for the first task. She still didn't know what it was, so she practiced a bit of everything. She knew creatures were often used in the tournament thanks to Hermione , so she spent some time reading up on quadruple X and quintuple X creatures.

Her chemistry and math were puyshed aside for the moment and she spent less time on the theory side of her advanced studies as well.

She felt her biggest disadvantage was that she couldn't use her most powerful spells because even the legal ones would bring back the "Dark Lady in Training" comments and speculation.

The day before the task Harry was approached by Professor Moody. She had been on her way to transfiguration when he grabbed her arm. She froze for a moment, memories of Lockhart assaulting her mind, but soon regained herself and pulled away with a glare.

"_Don't_ touch me." She growled.

"Sorry, lass." Moody said. "But I need to speak to you for a moment."

"About what?" Harry was suspicious. She didn't trust the new defence professor.

"The tournament. I wanted to make sure you're ready for the first task."

"As ready as one can be when they don't know what they're facing." Harry said curtly.

"You don't know? I'd have thought you'd have figured it out by now. It's—"

"Don't tell me!" Harry cut him off. "I don't want to know."

"Why not? You bet your hide the other two champions know." Moody seemed rather surprised that she hadn't cheated. Probably because she was a Slytherin.

"Good for them. I don't care. I don't want to know. If you tell me I'll go to the judges and inform them you told me what the task is."

"Fine, have it your way, lass." Moody grumbled. "Off to class with you."

And off to class she went. She spent all her classes reading more about magical creatures as it was the only potentially helpful theoretical subject she could think of.

That evening she made sure to eat a large dinner and go to bed early.

She woke the next day before the break of dawn, but couldn't get back to sleep because of nerves. Part of her was beginning to regret not cheating, but she quickly scolded herself for letting her nerves get to her.

She ate as much as she could stomach at breakfast and talked to Pansy until Professor Snape approached her.

"Miss Potter, follow me. It is time to gather for the first task." He said. His tone gave her the feeling he didn't approve of her entering herself in the tournament.

Harry gulped and followed him. He led her towards the edge of the forbidden forest. As they approached, a tent came into view. It was obviously where the champions were gathering.

Snape left her at the entrance of the tent without a word. Harry went inside.

As soon as she entered she was greeted by Bagman. He vaguely explained the task—they were to collect the golden egg and had to get passed something to retrieve it.

Harry waited anxiously as the sound of hundreds of people walking by the tent made its way to her ears.

Finally, Bagman opened the sack that contained varieties of whatever they had to face.

"Ladies first, Miss Delacour." He said, offering the bag to Fleur. She nodded and pulled out, to Harry's horror, a bloody _dragon_.

"Brilliant." She mumbled to herself. She really regretted not cheating at the moment.

Harry was offered the bag next. She reached her hand in and pulled out a miniature dragon. She was pretty sure it was a Chinese fireball. It had the number three around its neck.

Krum pulled out the final dragon next an then Bagman explained that the numbers around their necks indicated the order in which they would attempt the task.

Harry was relieved to be last. It gave her time to think of a plan.

She waited anxiously as the two older champions completed their task. By the time she was called her lip was raw from being chewed nervously.

She forced herself to stop biting her lip as she walked into the stadium. She could not show how nervous she was, she could not show weakness.

Cheers greeted her as did several loud boos. She ignored the negative sounds (mostly from Gryffindors) and waved to the crowd.

Harry took a deep breath and raised her wand. "Accio golden egg."

She waited several moments, but the egg didn't budge.

"Okay... Plan B!" Harry nodded to herself. She lifted her wand once more. "Serpensortia!"

A large snake shot out of her wand. It was at least three metres long, but still, it was too small to distract the dragon efficiently.

"Engorgio!" Harry shot the spell at the snake and kept pumping magic into it until the snake was much larger.

"_Hello, pretty._" Harry hissed. She ignored the negative reaction her use of parseltongue drew from most of the crowd. "_I know it's a lot to ask of you, but would you please distract the dragon_?"

"_Mistress has made me even greater than I was before... I shall do as mistress bids._" The snake hissed in reply.

Harry smiled as the snake slithered towards the dragon. The dragon roared and moved to fight off the snake. It opened its mouth and spewed flames, but the snake was surprising agile and dodged.

The snake hissed and bared its fangs, taunting the dragon. The dragon fell for the taunt and moved close enough to bite the snake. The snake's thick, hard scales prevented any serious injury.

While the two reptiles fought, Harry made a mad dash for the golden egg. When she was perhaps six metres away, however, the dragon noticed her and shot a stream of fire her way.

Harry hid behind a rock, but the heat was still intense and she broke out into a sweat.

"_Help_!" Harry hissed to the snake. The snake took advantage of the dragon's focus on Harry and manged to get right up close to it. It quickly wrapped itself around the dragon's neck and squeezed.

The dragon let out a choked roar and began trying to get out of the snake's clutches, but the snake held fast.

While the dragon was busy with snake, Harry ran the remaining distance to the egg. She grabbed it and made a mad dash for the other side of the stadium. Once out of the dragon's reach she thanked the serpent and dismissed it.

"And the youngest champion is the fastest to accomplish the task!" Bagman cried. "Let's see how the judges score her!"

Madam Maxime gave her an eight, while Dumbledore gave her a six. Crouch gave her a six as well, while Bagman gave her a ten. Karkaroff gave her a nine.

Harry scowled. While she felt Karkaroff had judged her fairly, as did Madam Maxime and perhaps Bagman, Dumbledore and Crouch obviously lowered her score for using a "dark" skill.

Still, she was in second place with thirty-nine points, just one less than Viktor, who was in the lead with forty points.

Harry re-entered the champion's tent while mentally cursing Dumbledore and Crouch for being biased bastards.

"That was very good, Harry." Viktor said.

"Thank you. I just wish I could have watched you and Fleur." Harry grinned.

"I was nothing special, Harry." Fleur smiled sadly. "I came in last, after all."

"Still, you successfully got past a dragon. How many people can say that?" Harry encouraged.

Before Fleur could respond, Ludo Bagman entered the tent, telling them well done. He then told them when the second task would be and explained that the egg held a clue that would help them prepare for the second task. The three champions were then dismissed.

When Harry exited the tent she was immediately accosted by Rita Skeeter.

"May I have a word, Harry?" the reporter asked.

"Sorry, Rita, but not now. I'm exhausted from the task. Perhaps another time." Harry declined, thinking of Rita's article from the wand weighing ceremony. The article said she was two years younger than she actually was, questioned her relationship with Tom, and painted her as an overconfident brat who was still reeling from the loss of her parents. Rita had left out the part about Voldemort trying to spare her mother, likely not wanting to paint him in a good light.

"I look forward to another time, then." Rita grinned nastily.

Harry continued walking back to the castle.

-x-

That evening the Slytherins threw a party. The house elves were convinced to prepare all sorts of snacks and drinks for the celebration, much to Harry's dismay.

Towards the end of the part Harry was encouraged to open the golden egg. She did so and promptly dropped it.

"Argh!" she cried as she covered her ears. She then bent down, covering one ear with her hand and the other with her shoulder, and attempted to close the egg with one hand. It took her awhile, but she managed.

The room was silent.

"What was that?" Harry asked.

"Sounded like a banshee!" A first year called. Other suggestions were thrown out too. Most were unrealistic until a seventh year boy spoke up.

"I think it's merpeople." The older boy said.

"Aren't they supposed to have beautiful voices though?" Pansy asked.

"Only underwater." He quickly explained. Outside of water they sound something like that egg. I'd try opening it underwater at the very least."

"Thanks, I'll try that..." Harry said. "But for now I'm going to bed. I'm exhausted."

Harry carried the egg to her dorm and placed it under her bed. She then changed into her pyjamas and started writing to Tom about the task.

He was pleased when she admitted that she should have cheated and agreed that Dumbledore and Crouch were biased.

After a few more minutes of conversing, Tom told Harry to go to sleep.

She grudgingly put away her diary, but fell asleep soon after her head hit the pillow.

-o-

AN: Karkaroff giving a high score—It's not mentioned in my story, but in the background he allied himself with Tom. Note he still made sure Harry's score was less than Krum's. Plus he was impressed with her use of parseltongue. I imagine Dumbles and Crouch areso anti-dark that they'd give her the lowest score they felt they could get away with, considering she wasn't injured or anything.

My beta disappeared after proof reading chapter five or so, so if you're willing to beta some or all of the chapters since then or just future chapters, let me know! Even just betaing one would be amazing.

Next chapter is the Yule Ball! I'm excited to write it. I already have a drawing of Harry's outfit linked on my profile. Please check it out. I had a lot of fun drawing it. There's a photo of Hank and a casual drawing of Harry as well, in case you didn't know.

Um... I can't think of anything else. Let me know if you have any questions! I love you guys! Thanks for all the favs, follows, and reviews!

Have a Happy New Year!

Eliza


	24. Let's Have a Ball

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 24: Let's Have a Ball

-o-

"What do you mean, 'my partner'?" Harry said plainly.

"Your dance partner." Snape sneered. "Your date."

"I don't even want to go to the ball though." Harry protested.

"Well you should have thought of that before you entered your name in the tournament. The champions must be there."

"Even if _I_ didn't, someone else did, too. So I'd still be stuck going to the stupid ball." She grumbled.

"Not my problem, Miss Potter. Find a date. You will be opening the ball with them." Snape paused. "You _can _ dance, correct?"

"Of course I can!" Harry glared. She actually could. Pansy had taught her sometime in second year when the blonde witch found out that Harry didn't know how. She made sure Harry could waltz with the best of them.

"Well then, do your house and school proud." Snape stared at her for a moment. "Now get to class!"

"Yes sir." Harry quickly left Snape's classroom and headed towards the charms room.

The charms lesson was all theory, so Harry didn't bother paying attention. Instead, she fretted about the ball.

She didn't actually mind dancing. The problem was that she didn't want to take some random boy to the ball, she wanted to take _Tom_. But obviously, she couldn't. And she didn't want to give the person she takes the wrong impression. She wasn't interested. The only person she wanted was Tom.

She wished she wasn't the last of the quidditch team, aside from Draco and some guy she didn't even remember and doubted would get on the team again. If the rest of the team was still there she could have taken one of them as just friends. She couldn't take Draco, who was the only other boy she was friendly with, because she was fairly certain he would be taking Pansy. Or so she guessed, judging by the fact that she caught them snogging at the post-first task party.

When classes finally finished for the day Harry and Pansy headed towards the abandoned classroom they frequented to meet Hermione.

"Pansy, thank you so much for teaching me to dance in second year." Harry said as she sat down on a desk.

"I knew you'd need it someday. Who would have thought it would be for the Yule Ball?" Pansy smiled. "I'm so excited! I hope Draco asks me."

"I'm sure he will." Harry assured her friend.

Just then Hermione entered the classroom with a flushed face.

"Oooh!" Pansy squealed. "Someone asked you, didn't they?"

"I—well—yes." The brunette stuttered,

"Who was it?" Harry asked her friend eagerly. "What did you say?"

"Viktor Krum." Hermione answered with a blush. "I said yes. I mean, I still like Marcus... but maybe this will make him jealous? I'll at least give Viktor a shot though. He seems like a good guy."

"Just don't hurt him, 'Mione." Harry warned. "He really is a nice guy, and I'm pretty sure he genuinely likes you."

"I'll be careful. I don't want to hurt him either." Hermione promised. "Who do you want to take?"

"No clue." Harry said glumly. "I _want_ to take Tom. But obviously I can't for multiple reasons.

"I know what you mean." Hermione sympathised. "Why not just wait for someone to ask you and go with them?"

"Maybe. But I'll have to be clear that it's just as friends." Harry asserted. "I don't want to lead anyone on."

"I'm sure something will work out." Pansy tried to comfort Harry since she was still down about the ball.

"Maybe." Harry shook her head. "Let's change the subject."

-x-

Later that night Harry pulled out her diary and began writing to Tom when she froze. It just hit her like a truck—she wouldn't be able to go home for Yule.

She nearly burst into tears at the thought. She loved celebrating Yule with Tom. She wouldn't even see him at all for the holidays (or his birthday, for that matter). It already felt like it had been forever since she'd seen him since he was too busy to sneak in meetings at the shrieking shack or visit on the last Hogsmeade trip.

_Tom, _she finally wrote. _Why didn't you tell me about the stupid Yule Ball and that I'd have to stay at Hogwarts for the break?_

_I thought you already knew. _Tom replied. _I assumed you had researched the tournament thoroughly before deciding to compete._

_Well... I'm... Uh... I didn't think of that._

_Silly brat. Well, perhaps you will learn your decisions have consequences. _Tom wrote. _I'll be sure to meet you in Hogsmeade next time there's a trip, alright?_

_Fine. Thanks Tom... But I have an even bigger problem._

_What is it, dearest?_

_I have to find a date for the Yule Ball, but I can't take the person I want to, and I don't want to give anyone the wrong idea, you know? _Harry bit her lip nervously as she wrote.

_I see. Who is it you want to take?_

Harry blushed crimson. She had a feeling Tom knew she wanted to take him and was amused.

_You, of course._ She wrote boldly.

_And I would have been delighted to take you, were it possible. _Tom replied. Harry smiled at his response. _Why not ask one of your friends, dearest?_

_The members of the quidditch team that I was close to are all gone, Draco is taking Pansy, Viktor is taking Hermione and I don't have any other male friends._

_I see. That is quite the conundrum. I'm afraid I'm out of ideas and can be of no further help._

_The girls think I should just wait for someone to ask me._

_Perhaps. But be sure you don't give them the wrong idea._

_And what would that be? _Harry teased.

_That you're available._

Harry asked Tom what he meant by that, but he refused to elaborate. Not long after that he told her he had to go, leaving her both frustrated and hopeful.

-x-

Pansy's dreams were fulfilled the next day when Draco asked her to the Yule Ball. Harry was happy for her friend, but it acutely reminded her of the fact that she couldn't take the person she desired to the ball.

The day passed in a blur. Hermione received a response to the letter she had sent Marcus telling him about Viktor Krum asking her to the ball. Unfortunately he didn't seem to mind and was happy for Hermione. Hermione spent the morning moping, but was she was cheered up by her friends by the time classes were done for the day.

The three girls were doing homework in the library when Harry's prayers were answered. She felt a tap on her shoulder and flinched away from it. She turned to see who it was.

"Sorry!" The boy said. "Didn't mean to scare you."

"No worries." Harry assessed the boy. He was older than her, perhaps a sixth or seventh year, a Hufflepuff. She was fairly certain his name was Cedric Diggory. "Can I help you?"

"Well," he smiled charmingly (though not as charmingly as Tom smiled). "I was wondering if you would do me the honour of being my date to the Yule Ball?"

Harry blinked dumbly. She was surprised an older student who wasn't a friend wanted to take her to the Yule Ball. She didn't even know him very well. She was pretty sure the closest thing to interaction between them was when she played quidditch against him the previous year. Though now that she thought about it, she was pretty sure she'd heard Pansy gossiping about him before. Apparently he was rather popular.

"Well," Harry said while ignoring the looks from her friends. "On one condition."

"Er... okay. What is it?" Cedric's smile faltered for a moment, but he quickly hid it.

"We go as just friends." Harry said. "Otherwise I'll have to decline."

"No, no! Friends is fine." Cedric assured her. "I'll pick you up outside the dungeons a half hour before the ball starts?"

"Sounds good, Cedric. I'll see you then." Harry smiled at him, but it didn't reach her eyes.

Cedric nodded and left. Once he was out of sight Harry heaved a sigh.

"Well, that's taken care of."

"You don't seem too excited Harry, considering you scored the Hufflepuff Hottie." Pansy raised her eyebrows.

"The "Hufflepuff Hottie"?" Hermione giggled.

"What? That's what they call him! And can you blame them?" Pansy said defensively. "He _is_ pretty good looking. For a Hufflepuff. Anyways, still down that you can't bring Tom?"

"Yes." Harry mumbled. "I'm not looking forward to this stupid ball. I'd rather spend the holidays at home with Tom."

"Hey, don't be like that. I'm sure you'll have plenty of fun at the ball." Pansy encouraged.

"Maybe" the jade eyed girl muttered unenthusiastically.

"Maybe—? Yes you will! You like dancing, you like getting all dressed up, what's not to like?" Hermione asked rhetorically.

"My date." Harry deadpanned.

"Then why did you accept?" Pansy said in an exasperated tone.

"Because I need a date for the ball and who knows if anyone else would ask me?" The "duh" was heavily implied.

"You're not only a triwizard champion, but you're also Harriet Potter, the girl-who-lived." Pansy pointed out. "Plenty of people would want to be your date."

"Except, you know, I'm a cheat and a Slytherin." The jade eyed girl pointed out.

"Whatever. I still think you would have had more offers." Pansy huffed.

"Can we just get back to studying?" Hermione asked to diffuse the situation.

They studied until just before curfew. Hermione bid her friends goodbye at the library doors and started walking towards Gryffindor tower. Harry and Pansy walked through the cold hallways of the school until they reached the Slytherin common room.

Once inside, Pansy went to see Draco and Harry headed to her dormitory. AS soon as she reached her bed, she dropped her bag on the floor and flopped down on it face first. She slowly turned over and sighed.

It had been a stressful day, so she just laid there for several moments before putting on her nightgown and taking out her diary to tell Tom about the latest developments.

_Well, I have a date for the ball. _She wrote hesitantly.

_That was fast. _Tom responded. Harry had the feeling he wasn't pleased.

_Just as friends. _She added.

_Who is it? _He demanded.

_Cedric Diggory, an older Hufflepuff. _Harry informed him.

_A Hufflepuff? You're going with a _Hufflepuff_? _

_He was the first one to ask me! I needed a date! Like, literally needed a date. It's mandatory. I'll take whoever as long as they can dance. Oh Merlin I hope he can dance... Besides. Hufflepuff means harmless. Mostly._

_I suppose you're correct. _Tom allowed_. But if he tries anything, hex him._

_Will do. _Harry assured him._ How are things at the ministry?_

_Busy. While I'm not introducing any laws of my own, I've been helping some allies with theirs. I've also been doing a lot of research._

_Research on what?_

_I need to modify or create a ritual to defeat my other self once and for all. I hope to just modify one, but I may need to create one from scratch. I'm still looking for the best ritual to modify, as there are several that could work, but there are also some drawbacks to most of them._

_Is it hard to modify a ritual? _Harry inquired.

_Very. But it is usually simpler than creating one. It's much like potion modification. You change one thing and you need to tweak everything else so it still works together. _Tom explained.

_Sounds difficult. Is that why you're always too busy to visit?_

_Yes, but I've been sensing my other self growing in strength, so I want to figure things out as soon as possible._

_What do you mean, you can feel it?_

_We're connected through our shared, but broken, soul. You too could sense him and the other horcruxes if you lowered your occlumency shields. _Tom informed her.

_So I'm connected to you too? _Harry was rather excited at the prospect of being able to sense Tom.

_Yes, I imagine it would be possible to communicate mentally._ He theorized.

_Really? How?_

_As of yet, I am unsure. We will have to experiment at some point. We be careful though, lest we alert Voldemort to any mental communication. _Tom warned her.

_You mean Voldemort could hear us? _Harry felt sick at the idea of Voldemort eavesdropping on her conversations with Tom.

_Potentially. I'm uncertain. It is probably best not to attempt communication until my other self is taken care of._

_You're probably right. So once Voldemort's gone what do we do?_ Harry had been wondering the specifics for awhile.

_I plan to run for minister. When the two of us defeat Voldemort, we'll be seen as heroes. It should be pretty easy to be elected as minister after that. I'll slowly place trusted people in positions of power until everyone at the ministry is loyal to me—to us._ Tom wrote. _I merely have to convince them that the laws to be passed are for the betterment of the nation and society, and keep myself well liked by the public. You will be a big help with that. While I'll have to hold an election once every seven years, I'll be making sure there is no real competition. If I get tired of the post I'll have one of my lackies elected in my steed._

_What about me? _Harry asked him.

_You wanted to be a teacher, yes?_ Tom asked and then continued without letting Harry respond. _Then that is what you shall be doing._

_It sounds nice Tom. _Harry smiled softly. _I can't wait._

_Nor can I, dearest. I believe that's enough talking now. You should get some sleep. Goodnight, Harriet._

_Goodnight, Tom. _Harry wrote before she closed her diary and put it, her ink, and quill away. She then crawled under her emerald green covers.

-x-

After finding a date, the month of December passed quickly. Soon, winter break was upon them. Very few students had elected to go home, in contrast with previous years. Harry still wished she could have been one of the few to leave, though.

The first day of break was the day before Yule. Harry worked on her homework that day in hopes of getting it done before all the excitement started. She barely managed to finish it by curfew and went to bed eager for Yule to come so she could open up presents.

She woke up early on Yule morning and was disappointed to see that there were no presents at the foot of her bed, which is where Tom told her presents were left on holidays and birthdays.

She frowned and got out of her warm, four poster bed. She pulled out her diary and found she already had a message from Tom.

_Happy Yule. _It said. Harry smiled and began writing.

_To you, too. Any idea where my presents are?_ After she wrote that, she realized how bratty it sounded.

_I suppose I forgot to mention Hogwarts withholds them until Christmas day. _Tom answered. Harry could practically see his sneer.

_Well, that's stupid. _She complained.

_It is indeed. It is something I intend to change. Or perhaps as a teacher you'll be in a better position to change it. _Tom suggested.

Harry continued to talk to Tom until Pansy woke up. Harry bid goodbye to Tom, grabbed her outfit for the day, and headed to the bathroom. Pansy soon followed suit.

Once they were clean and dressed they headed to the Great Hall for breakfast, grumbling about Dumbledore and his stupid Christmas celebrations replacing Yule.

When they were done eating they went back to their dorm and picked up their makeup kits and mirrors. Once they had provided the desired items they walked to the abandoned classroom to meet Hermione.

They didn't have to wait long for Hermione to appear. She too brought her own small makeup kit.

The three girls laid out all the makeup and took out pictures of their dresses.

They spent the day trying out different looks to match their dresses. In the end they were quite pleased with the looks they decided upon and called it a day.

When the day of the ball arrived the girls were very excited. It happened to be Christmas, so they finally received their presents that morning. The gift that stood out to Harry was a beautiful silver and amethyst ring from Tom. It had two serpents decorating the thick band and two small amethysts to the side of a larger one.

Harry immediately showed it to Pansy who squealed in delight for her friend.

"A ring!" The blonde witch exclaimed. "He's definitely into you. Was there a note?"

"Yes. It said to consider it a promise." Harry blushed. "He said to wear it on my right ring finger."

"Not your left?" Pansy's face fell.

"Well, I think it's a bit soon for that, don't you?" Harry rationalized.

"True." Pansy agreed. "Come on. Let's go eat, relax for a bit and then do our nails for the night. It's already almost noon..."

-x-

The girls spent most of the day pampering themselves. Once they were done with their nails they took nice, long showers. Harry used an expensive shampoo to tame her wild hair. She stepped out of the shower when she was done and wrapped a robe around herself. She spent the next half hour combing her hair in front of a mirror before drying it. By the time she finished her hair was shiny, smooth and not sticking up in every which way. It still had a slight wave to it, and Harry was very pleased with the final result.

Once her hair was done, Harry began the arduous task of putting on her makeup. She had decided on a less is more look without much eye makeup. She applied a light coat of blush to her cheeks and settled for a muted lipstick.

Next was picking out her accessories. Harry selected a light purple headband to match her dress and laid out two gold bracelets, one for each wrist. With her accessories taken care of, she decided to put on her dress.

She pulled out a white, short sleeved, off-the-shoulder blouse and pulled it on. She then put on a lilac dress with a gold waist band and straps. She shimmied into white tights, put on a puffy petticoat, and slipped into a pair of gold, high heeled Mary Janes. The then slipped her bracelet onto her wrists.

With her outfit complete, Harry stared in the full length mirror. She loved the way her dress flared out into a bell shape at the waist and ended just below her knee. She wished Tom could see her all dressed up like this.

"Oh, you look beautiful!" Pansy gushed. She was also all done up. She wore a baby pink, floor length gown with intricate silver detailing on the bodice. Her blonde hair was artificially grown out for the night and fell down her shoulders in loose curls. She wore more makeup than Harry, but kept it tasteful.

"So do you!" Harry smiled. "I can't wait to see Hermione."

"Ooh! Neither can I. I'm sure she's beautiful."

"Come on, let's go meet our dates. It's past quarter to seven.

-x-

Hermione indeed looked great in her periwinkle dress with her hair sleek and straight, done up in an elegant knot. She looked lovely standing next to Viktor and Harry complimented her as soon as she saw her friend.

"You look amazing too, Fleur." Harry added, hoping to befriend the older girl more. They would greet each other in passing, but Harry wanted to be closer to the other girl.

"Thank you Harry." Fleur beamed. "You look good yourself."

Harry thanked Fleur and conversed with her, Hermione, and Viktor. Cedric and Fleur's date, Roger Davies, stood there awkwardly while the four spoke. Cedric tried to join the conversation, but found it difficult to find anything to say.

Finally, they were told to proceed to the head table. They slowly made their way there, smiles on their faces.

Menus were laid out on the table and Harry picked her up to look through, though she was unsure of how to order. She caught on when Dumbledore placed his order and soon had food sitting in front of her.

She looked down the table and noticed Percy Weasley was there, but Crouch wasn't. She shrugged and decided not to ask. It really didn't matter to her.

As she ate she talked with Cedric. She hated to admit it, but it was a rather boring conversation and she could barely pretend to be interested in whatever it was he was telling her.

Finally, dinner ended and it was time to open the ball.

Cedric turned out to be a good dancer, Harry found out. Dancing with him was much more enjoyable than speaking with him, though she still wished she was in Tom's arms instead.

They danced to three songs after the opening dance before they were interrupted by Viktor and Hermione.

"Partner swap?" Hermione suggested.

"Of course!" Harry said before Cedric could say no. Harry began dancing with Viktor while Cedric reluctantly danced with Hermione, keeping his eyes on Viktor and Harry the whole time.

That evening Harry went on to dance with several people, including Draco, Roger Davies, Theodore Nott, Blaise Zabini and a handful of other Slytherins.

Cedric didn't seem too happy about her dancing with other people, but Harry didn't care.

She did care though, when Cedric's hands wandered from her waist to her hips, though she didn't say anything. She did, however, speak up when he tried to kiss her. Luckily, she managed to turn away from him so he only got her cheek. Her first kiss was reserved for Tom.

"What the hell, Diggory?" She snarled.

"I—well—I just thought—" he stammered. "You were giving me all the signals!"

"No I wasn't!" the furious witch protested. "I said we were going as just friends and I meant it!"

"Oh, come on. I know you were warming up to me." Cedric smiled charmingly, but Harry's glare didn't lessen. She _had _ been warming up to him, as a friend, but she didn't tell him that.

"No, I'm not." Harry shook her head in disgust and started to walk away. Cedric chased after her before she could get very far and grabbed her arm.

"Let me go!" she growled as she tugged on her arm. She stomped off shortly after she managed to get it free, completely ignoring anything Cedric had to say, though she was pretty sure he apologized.

She made her way to the table she saw Hermione, Pansy, and Draco sitting at.

"Where's Viktor?" she wondered out loud.

"Getting me some punch." Hermione answered. "Where's 'The Hufflepuff Hottie'?"

"Don't know, don't care." Harry wrinkled her nose.

"Uh oh," Pansy perked up, going into gossip mode. "What happened?"

"Well for one, his hands wandered a bit, but I ignored it. I was having fun dancing. Until he tried to kiss me that is." Harry scowled as she spoke.

"What? What did you do?" Pansy asked eagerly.

"Told him off and left." The "duh", yet again, went unsaid.

"Boys are so stupid sometimes." Hermione sighed. "Did I tell you about the incident with Ron Weasley?"

"What did the Weasel do now?" Draco snickered.

"He asked me to the ball as a last resort." Hermione rolled her eyes. "Then, he didn't believe me when I told him I already had a date."

"Seriously?" Pansy laughed. "What an idiot."

"I'll say. " Draco shook his head. "You know Granger, you aren't so bad, for a mud—muggleborn, I mean."

"Thanks I guess." Hermione said. "Did Pansy tell you we're distantly related?"

"What on earth are you talking about?" he sounded genuinely confused.

"I guess she didn't. I did a blood test at Gringotts a while back. It showed that I descend from the Bones and Malfoys." The brunette explained.

"Really? You certainly aren't on the family tree." Draco said.

"She's descended from squibs. Sirius told me they're usually removed from the family tree." Harry interjected.

"Makes sense, I guess." Draco said just as Viktor arrived with Fleur.

"Sorry I took so long, Her-minny." Viktor said has he put a glass of punch down in front of Hermione. "I ran into Fleur and she seemed upset. Is it alright if she joins us?"

"Of course." Harry agreed. "What happened, Fleur?"

"Davies wouldn't take no for an answer." She sniffed disdainfully. "Of course, I showed him why I'm a Triwizard Champion."

"My date tried to get fresh with me too." Harry confided.

"It eez the curse of being beautiful, no?" Fleur said in a teasing tone as she flipped her hair.

"Yes, it certainly is." The jade eyed witch grinned while the others laughed.

The rest of the evening flew by. Harry danced some more with Viktor and Draco, and even her female friends, too. By the end of the night she was exhausted.

She slowly trudged back to the dungeons where she washed her face clean of any makeup and undressed. She slid into a light green nightgown and climbed into bed. She was too tired to bother writing to Tom.

Harry slept well that night and didn't stir until noon. She slowly sat up and stretched, getting out of bed soon after. She stumbled to the bathroom where she took a long, hot shower. When she was done she got dressed in a black pleated skirt and an emerald green top. Her silver and amethyst ring was on her finger.

She checked her diary for messages from Tom, and quickly replied to what he had said.

Harry told him all about the ball and how much she had until Cedric Diggory tried to kiss her.

_He _what_? _Tom wrote furiously. _Did he do anything else?_

_He was sort of all over me while we danced, but I let him have it for the way he was acting. _Harry assured him.

_He is not to touch you—it's not his place. You're mine, Harriet, and mine alone. _Harry's eyes widened as she read Tom's message. A pleased grin spread across her red face.

_What do you mean? _She asked

_I'll explain next time I see you. I have to go now. Sorry, dearest._

Harry scowled and closed her diary. How typical of him to say something like that and then leave her hanging. Still, she was more than pleased with what he said and knew she had to tell Pansy and Hermione as soon as possible.

-o-

AN: Hello all! A reminder that Harry's Yule ball outfit is linked on my profile, towards the bottom of it. It was inspired by the Lolita fashion. Feel free to check out the rest of my art, too. *wink wink nudge nudge*

I have chapter 25 written out by hand already, so I shouldn't take too long to update again. It really depends on how well I can motivate myself, though, and if I need to add things. It might be a bit short.

I have found a beta, I believe. It is Charlemagne Gryffis. Thank you all for your kind offers. If I didn't respond to you it's not because I didn't think you would be a good beta, but because I chose a beta rather randomly.

Um... I don't think I have much else to say, I love you all and thank you for your reviews, favourites, and follows.

Best,

Eliza


	25. The Task at Hand

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 25: The Task at Hand

-o-

Harry was on cloud nine for the next few days. She was only brought down when she got a certain copy of the Daily Prophet that was released several days after the ball.

She was front page news once again, this time for being a 'loose girl' who was leading on several different boys. There were pictures of her dancing with Viktor, Draco and a few others. But the worst one was one of her and Cedric Diggory. It captured the moments just before she turned her head away when he tried to kiss her and looked very intimate. She knew as soon as she saw the picture that Tom would be furious.

Harry herself was enraged—how dare they imply she was some sort of slut? She stomped down to her dorm to grab her diary and write to Tom about what happened. He would know what to do.

A message was already waiting for her when she opened up her diary.

_I'm working on it, dearest._

_What are you doing about it? _She wrote, but even half hour later, he didn't respond. With a sigh, she gave up on waiting for his response.

When she finally left her dorm she found Draco and Pansy sitting on a sofa talking. They noticed her just as she walked out of the dorm and met her at the common room exit.

"You okay?" Pansy asked, concern written all over her face. Draco also seemed concern.

"Yeah. Tom said he was working on it." Harry smiled weakly. She just wished she knew what that meant.

"Good. I imagine he was furious." Draco commented.

"Yeah, probably." Harry nodded absently as she, Pansy and Draco walked to their favourite meeting place—the abandoned classroom. Their trip was silent after that until they opened the door to the classroom.

As soon as they stepped inside they blinked in surprise. Gone were all but five of the desks and instead there were several couches and beanbag chairs. The usual dust was gone and the floor was now covered in soft carpet instead of the cold, hard stone that was typical to the castle. The walls were decorated with Slytherin and Gryffindor banners. Hermione sat on one of the couches looking pleased with herself. Surprisingly, Fleur sat beside her.

"What the- how? When?" Harry gaped.

"I thought you needed some cheering up after the Daily Prophet's article. Fleur asked if there was anything she could do for you, so I suggested she helped me remodel this classroom." Hermione explained. "Do you like it?"

"I love it Hermione! This is brilliant!" Harry beamed. Pansy nodded vigorously in agreement.

"We're glad you think so." Fleur smiled kindly. "I know what it's like for people to say such things about you. If you need anything, I'm here to help, alright?"

"Thank you Fleur. That's very kind of you. Feel free to join us here anytime." Harry offered.

"I think I'll take you up on that, if it's alright with everyone else?" Fleur smiled genuinely.

"Of course it is." Pansy, Hermione and Draco said in unison. Upon realizing that they had all spoken at the same time, they burst into laughter.

"We'll have to invite Viktor, too." Harry added as she sat down on a green beanbag chair.

"For sure." Draco agreed. He still had a bit of hero worship for the Bulgarian seeker.

The others took seats as well and the day was spent joking and laughing in their own private common room, as it came to be called.

-x-

That evening Harry finally decided it was time to try and figure out the golden egg from the first task. She would take a bath and open it underwater, all the while hoping that the guy who suggested this course of action was right. Because if he wasn't, Harry had no clue what to do.

She ran a hot bath in one of the only two bathtubs in the dorm's bathroom. They weren't as big as she heard the prefect's tubs were, but it was sill larger and deeper than an average tub. As soon as the tub was full, Harry turned off the water and climbed in with the egg. She set it down on the bottom of the tub and carefully opened it.

As soon as she opened the egg she heard the muffled sound of a beautiful voice singing. She tried to make out the words, but it was no use. After thinking for a moment, she lowered her head until it was submerged in the water.

This was apparently the correct thing to do because she now heard the singing clear as day. She listened attentively as it cycled through the song several times, going up for air twice. After hearing the song enough, Harry closed the egg.

They would take something precious of hers and hide it in the lake. She would have one hour to find whatever it was that they took.

Harry bit her lip nervously. Obviously she was supposed to breathe underwater somehow. It was obviously possible, but she wasn't sure how. Not only that, but she wasn't a very good swimmer.

Harry sighed and decided to worry about it the next day. She could talk it over with her friends  
(minus Viktor and Fleur) and see if they had any ideas.

Her main objective completed, Harry began washing herself. Once she had washed her hair and scrubbed herself clean she pulled the plug and let the water drain. She climbed out of the tub and wrapped a fuzzy emerald green towel around herself. She relaxed for a few moments in the steam before drying off and putting on her nightgown. She grabbed the egg and left the bathroom.

When she reached her bed she stored the egg underneath it once more and climbed in. She decided against writing Tom since she was too tired and instead let herself fall asleep.

Harry woke early in the morning and pulled out her diary. She noticed that Tom had left a short message the night before and she dutifully replied. She then went on to explain what the second task would be and asked for some advice. She waited ten minutes for a reply before becoming impatient and giving up for the time being.

It was only after getting dressed and eating breakfast that Harry remembered what day it was. It was December thirty-first, Tom's real birthday. As soon as she realized this, Harry told something she forgot something inside their dorm and hurried back to her diary. Tom still hadn't responded, so she simply wished him a happy birthday and expressed her regrets for not being there to celebrate with him.

Harry didn't bother waiting for a reply. She headed to the private common room to meet Pansy, Hermione and Draco. She arrived a few minutes later and plopped down on a beanbag chair. She looked at her three friends and sighed.

"I know what the first task is." Harry told them. She went on to explain her problem to her friends and asked them for advice.

"Gillyweed should do the job." Draco suggested. "It will let you breathe underwater for an hour and will transform your body in a way that makes it easier to swim."

"That sounds perfect, actually." Harry blinked in surprise. She didn't think they'd have any ideas off the top of their heads. "Where can I get some?"

"Professor Snape should have some. I'll see if he'll give me any." The blond offered. "He's rather fond of me."

"Is there any truth to the rumour that you're his godson?" Harry asked. It was a rumour floating around the school for quite some time.

Draco snorted. "No. I don't even know where that came from."

"Oh. Okay. Anyways, getting the gillyweed would be great, thanks." Harry smiled.

"No problem. But you owe me one, deal?"

"Deal."

-x-

The next few weeks passed in a blur. Draco indeed procured gillyweed for Harry, and so Harry could go about school life as normal without worrying about the second task.

At the end of January, Peter Pettigrew was released from Azkaban. Shortly afterward he disappeared. He was never seen in public and some speculated that he must have hidden himself in the muggle world. Others believed he went back to living life as a rat. Personally, Harry thought it was the latter.

Harry continued to do well in her classes and continued with her advanced studies, as well as her chemistry and math studies. Hermione was right there studying alongside her. The two witches progressed through most of the fifth year material and could probably pass their OWLs at this point.

Much of Harry's time was spent in the private common room with Hermione, Pansy and Draco, with Fleur and Viktor joining them two or three times a week. Viktor and Hermione were currently dating, as were Draco and Pansy.

Though fond of Viktor, Hermione kept writing to Marcus biweekly. She privately admitted that yes, she still liked Marcus, but she liked Viktor too. She said she wanted to give Viktor a chance since Marcus appeared to have no interest in her. Things were going well between the bookworm and the Bulgarian seeker. The two had a lot in common, surprisingly. Contrary to popular belief, Viktor cared about more than just quidditch and was rather studious. Hermione even managed to make him rethink his beliefs about house elves.

Pansy and Draco on the other hand had a much more volatile relationship. While they cared about each other, they often bickered and fought. Usually about silly things, but at the end of the day they would always reconcile. Usually their reconciliation involved a fair amount of snogging.

Fleur was still single and lamented the fact that few boys were ever interested in her as a person, instead admiring her solely for her beauty and veela allure.

Harry's love life was only slightly better than Fleur's. Tom had said she was his weeks ago, but insisted on discussing things in person at the next Hogsmeade weekend. Harry felt like she was in some sort of limbo with Tom. Like they weren't dating, but they were clearly more than just friends.

Meanwhile, she had to put up with other students calling her a slut. Tom had forced the Daily Prophet to print a retraction, but the damage was already done and half the school was treating her horribly.

Cedric Diggory apparently felt rather bad about what happened between them and apologized to her. He said he felt really bad about everything and genuinely thought she was starting to like him at the ball. He also promised to do his best to defend her when he heard people talking about her behind her back. Harry thanked him, but the two didn't interact any more than that.

Harry found more comfort in Fleur, who had faced similar ridicule before. The girls at Beauxbatons were all jealous of her beauty and allure and made up rumours about her. Fleur told Harry to stay strong and ignore them. She also reminded Harry that not only was she not a slut, but that even if she was, there's nothing wrong with that. It was a lame insult that Harry shouldn't take seriously, and after awhile, she didn't.

Harry also kept up regular correspondence with her godfather. She found that writing him was a bit of a chore. He was rather hung up on her use of parseltongue in the first task and wouldn't let it go. He tried to convince her that Tom was Dark and leading her down that path. But not to worry, of course, because Sirius was there to help her. Sirius also kept inquiring about whether or not she would be willing to come live with him instead of Tom. Each time Harry firmly told him no, but he kept asking persistently.

Her letters soon became short and clipped while his no longer contained anecdotes about his time at Hogwarts and with her parents. Harry tried to be patient with him, but eventually resorted to ignoring his letters.

Harry wasn't sure how she felt about Sirius anymore. She hoped this was just a rough patch and that they would eventually work through it. Sirius was one of the few links she had to her parents, after all. She didn't want to lose that.

As the second task approached Harry made sure to send Sirius a brief letter that let him know she had a plan for the second task and to stop worrying about her.

-x-

One cold February day the champions, judges, and spectators gathered by the lake. The champions were outfitted in swimsuits – Fleur's was a silvery blue, Harry wore an emerald green one, and Viktor was outfitted in blood red. Despite the warming charms the champions were allowed to cast on themselves, they were freezing.

Harry was cursing whoever decided it was a good idea to make them go swim in the lake in the middle of winter.

She clutched the gillyweed in her hand and waited for the task to begin. At the shrill sound of the whistle, she walked into the water and began chewing the gillyweed.

Shortly after swallowing she ducked her head under water so she could breathe through her new gills that appeared on her neck. Her fingers were green and webbed. Her feet were elongated and webbed as well. The water no longer felt freezing, but instead pleasantly cool.

Harry swam through the water swiftly, searching for whatever it was that they had taken. She could barely see three metres in front of herself and ended up swimming around rather randomly.

Suddenly, she felt something grab her ankle. She turned around and saw a grindylow holding her ankle. She tried to cast relashio, but instead the spell simply sent a jet of boiling water at the creature. None the less, it let go and Harry continued her search once more.

After what seemed like forever she heard the song from the egg. She had to be close. She followed the sound of the merpeople's voices with a victorious grin on her face.

She came upon a cluster of crude stone dwellings. She occasionally saw a merperson in one of the windows, but ignored them and quickly sped ahead. The dwellings became more numerous until they looked like some sort of underwater village. She saw a crowd of merpeople in front of houses in what looked to be some sort of village square. There was a large statue and Harry saw three people tied to it – Hermione, a little girl with silvery blonde hair that resembled Fleur, and finally Tom.

Harry was surprised to see Tom, as she would think he wouldn't go along with this, but immediately knew she was supposed to save him, even though Hermione was her friend, too. She swam over to him and tried to undo his ropes to no avail. Frustrated, she closed her eyes and willed the ropes to vanish. They did.

Harry grabbed Tom and started swimming back to shore. As she swam she saw Fleur was having trouble with several grindylows. Harry shot jets of boiling water at them until Fleur was free. She nodded at the older girl. Fleur looked beyond grateful as she nodded back.

Harry then continued swimming to shore with Tom. She wasn't sure which way was to shore, exactly, so she swam directly upwards until she broke the surface. She looked around until she saw the crowd gathered around the dock. She dived back under so she could breathe and started swimming in the correct direction.

She guided Tom to the dock and started to push him up since she couldn't leave the water yet. Someone helped her get him up on the dock, as she was too weak to do it by herself. Once he was on the dock, Tom awoke. He was bombarded by people who had rushed over with blankets as soon as Harry arrived at the dock with him. He took a blanket, thanked them and pulled out his yew and dragon heartstring wand from a holster on his wrist. He cast drying and warming charms on himself and looked around for Harry.

Harry was just walking towards the shore, the effects of the gillyweed having just worn off. People rushed to her with blankets and towels, much like they did to Tom. She politely thanked them as she walked over to Tom.

"Tom!" She cried as she threw herself at him and hugged him tightly. He returned the hug with one arm, a half smile upon his face.

"Hello to you too, Harriet." Tom said.

"Are you okay? I didn't think I'd see you here." Harry babbled in excitement.

"I'm fine, brat. I didn't expect to be here, but when they told me the goblet chose me as your hostage I figured I might as well come." Tom explained.

"I see." The talked quietly for a few more minutes, but were interrupted by the sound of Ludo Bagman's magically amplified voice. It seemed that Fleur and Viktor had also returned.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached a decision!" Harry glanced at the judges and noticed that Crouch was absent once again with Percy Weasley taking his place. "Merchieftess Murcus has told us everything that happened at the bottom of the lake, and so we have decided to award marks out of fifty as follows...

"To Miss Fleur Delacour, who used the bubblehead charm, returned second to last, and managed to save her hostage with assistance from another champion, we award thirty-eight points.

"Mr Viktor Krum used an incomplete form of transfiguration, which was none the less effective, and was last to return with his hostage, we award him forty points.

"Finally, to Miss Potter, who used gillyweed to great effect, helped another champion and returned first with her hostage, we award forty-eight points."

"Congratulations, dearest." Tom whispered in Harry's ear. "You're in first place."

"The third and final task shall take place on the twenty-fourth of June." Bagman continued. "The champions will be notified of what is coming exactly one month beforehand. Thank you all for your support of the champions."

"Mr Riddle, Miss Delacour, you two are welcome to join us at Hogwarts for the evening to warm up." Dumbledore said with a benign smile.

"I'll take you up on that, sir." Tom smiled charmingly. "Thank you so much. I've never really seen Hogwarts before."

"Of course, of course. It's the least I can do, my boy."

-x-

Harry introduced Tom to Fleur and Viktor shortly after they all returned to the castle. Tom joined the Slytherin table for lunch, much to the joy of most of the Slytherin females. Though they were disappointed when he completely ignored everyone but Harry and her friends. Harry on the other hand, was delighted with this.

Harry told her friends she need to speak with Tom privately, and her friends graciously agreed to let them use the private common room for as long as they needed. Harry and Tom thanked them, then proceeded to the private common room.

They arrived shortly thereafter. Tom closed the door and cast a privacy ward to make sure they wouldn't be interrupted.

"So..." Harry said as she stood there awkwardly.

"Yes, dearest?" Tom smirked as he slowly walked towards her.

"Uh... Well..." Harry stammered as Tom stopped right before her. She gulped. It took her a few moments to find the words she wanted to say. "Where do we stand?"

"Where do you want to stand, Harriet?" Tom asked lightly.

"Is it not obvious what I want?" Harry said boldly. She was fight down a blush, and losing badly.

"Yes." Tom agreed. "It is."

"So then it's up to you."

"Indeed. Well then." Tom stared at her a moment. She started back into his artificially blue eyes.

Suddenly, he broke eye contact and lowered his head until his lips were gently pressed to Harry's. After a few seconds he pulled back.

"Does that answer your question, dearest?" Tom smiled softly. It almost looked out of place on his face. Harry liked it, though she privately thought his more maniacal grins were far more attractive.

She nodded, a ferocious blush overtaking her face.

"Good." Tom smirked. He leaned down again and pressed his lips to Harry's once more.

He kept the kiss slow at first, but soon pressed against Harry's lips harder. She gasped in surprise and Tom used the opportunity to push his tongue into Harry's mouth.

Tom held Harry's hips while she gripped his shirt. He pulled Harry closer and continued to move his lips against hers.

Harry was in paradise. She loved the way Tom felt pressed up against her, the feeling of his lips on hers, the way his tongue explored her mouth, and the way he would occasionally nip at her bottom lip.

After several intense minutes the two broke apart, panting lightly. Tom rested his forehead on Harry's, keeping his hands on her hips. Harry released his shirt from her tight grip and grabbed Tom's hands.

"You are aware we must keep this quiet." Tom told the jade eyed girl softly. "People will believe I am taking advantage of you. That I'm too old for you."

"You're not that much older..." Harry grumbled, then sighed. "But yes, I know. Can I tell Pansy and Hermione? They can keep their mouths shut."

"I suppose so." Tom agreed. "If it gets out we'll deny it. So long as there is no evidence, we shall accuse them of slander."

"Should I be concerned that you consider people saying that you're dating me is slander?" she teased.

Tom smirked. "Yes."

Harry removed one of her hand's from Tom's and lightly smacked him on the chest. "How rude!"

"It's only because our... relationship is illegal, dearest. I would be in a lot of trouble if this gets out." Tom said.

"What is our relationship anyways? Are we boyfriend and girlfriend, or...?"

"I suppose you could consider us that. I prefer less... juvenile terms myself, but that is essentially correct." He said.

"Less juvenile terms?" Harry inquired with a blush. She felt like a little girl all of a sudden. "Like what?"

"Partners, lovers... The label doesn't really matter, though. Simply put, you are mine."

"And you're mine." Harry said hesitantly.

"I suppose so, dearest, I suppose so."

-o-

AN: We-e-e-llll... They finally kissed. I hope it was all right. I've never written people kissing before. I hope the kiss makes up for the fact that the chapter is a bit short...

Anything my lovely readers want to see in fourth or fifth year? I need some ideas. I have several subplots for sixth year, but not enough for fifth, and need some filler for fourth. I can get by without it, but I'd like to try and work some things you guys suggest into the story. It can be something simple like Harry getting new, cuter glasses (as one amazing reviewer suggested).

Anyways, thank you for all your support you guys. I never thought my story would be this well received. I imagined it being one of those "lucky if you get 100 reviews" stories.

Love you all!

Eliza


	26. Conflicts of Interest

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 26: Conflicts of Interest

-o-

After the day of the second task Harry met up with Tom every Saturday night in the shrieking shack. Some of the time was spent learning new spells, with other times they merely talking. Their physical relationship hadn't progressed very far. They often cuddled while talking at Harry's insistence, and often kissed, but beyond that things remained innocent. Tom's hands never wandered and he never pushed Harry to do something she wasn't ready for.

Pansy and Hermione were ecstatic to learn about the new couple. They readily agreed to keep the secret. A lot of their time was spent talking about and comparing their boyfriends when it was just the three of them in the private common room.

Most of their studying was done there now. They would still occasionally study in the library, but only when they needed additional reference texts.

Harry and Hermione were progressing nicely in all their studies. Classes were generally a time to do their homework and theoretical work instead of paying attention to the professors. They performed the desired spells, which they had learned ages ago, for the practical portions of class, but otherwise didn't participate. Potions practicals were an exception. They knew the theory like the back of their hands, but it still took a certain amount of time to brew the potions. Not to mention they rarely practised making potions outside of class.

Fleur and Viktor would often help Harry and Hermione when they got stuck and would teach them foreign spells not in the Hogwarts curriculum. In exchange Harry worked on teaching them the patronus charm. Draco and Pansy also sat in on the patronus lessons, but rarely joined in the other studies.

Both Draco and Pansy were content to learn at the pace of the Hogwarts curriculum. Instead, while Harry and Hermione studied, they played games like chess and exploding snap.

When Harry and Hermione weren't working, they sometimes taught the others muggle card games. The purebloods rather liked the games rummy and blackjack.

The three champions often speculated on what the third and final task would be. Some of the suggestions were plausible, but others were just plain ridiculous. In the end, they admitted that they had no clue what they would face, but joked it couldn't be as bad as facing a dragon.

Overall the term was progressing nicely for Harry in almost all aspects. The only downer was that her godfather was still being an ass. Harry hadn't written him since before the second task, but he kept sending letters every week.

She read each letter in hopes that Sirius would apologize about Tom and the way he kept trying to "help" her. Unfortunately, he only continued to say Tom was dark and leading her down that path. There was the occasional anecdote from his school days, but they were usually just stories trying to portray dark as bad.

Sirius also shared stories about his family.. The Blacks were apparently a very dark family, and his father was known to be very cruel. He believed she was that way because dark magic negatively affected her brain and caused a change in personality, but Harry knew that wasn't true. Casting magic could not affect the caster unless the spell was intended to be cast upon one's self. Harry was sure Sirius' mother was likely cruel due to the way she was raised and perhaps some genetic factors. Sirius also cited several other relatives, and it reinforced Harry's belief that mental instability ran in the Black family.

-x-

As the term passed the next Hogsmeade weekend grew closer and closer. Harry was beyond excited since Tom would be meeting her there for their first date. They couldn't, of course, go anywhere or do anything overly romantic, but they could enjoy a meal as a couple.

Harry asked Pansy to help her get ready for their date, and the blonde witch was delighted to oblige. It was March, which meant it was still fairly cold outside. As such, Harry decided it was best to wear pants rather than a skirt.

Pansy dressed Harry in a pair of black jeans, a green shirt that matched her eyes, and a black jacket she was instructed to keep open. Black boots with a small heel adorned her feet and smokey grey make up was applied around her eyes.

"You know," Pansy said as she helped Harry tame her hair. "You should think about getting different glasses."

"What? Why?" Harry took off her glasses and inspected them as best she could her impaired vision and her friend firmly tugging her hair if she moved her head too much. "I like these."

"Well, they suited you when you were younger, but not so much anymore." Pansy bit her lip as she tugged on a particularly difficult knot in her friend's hair. Harry winced and slid her glasses back on her face.

"Really?" she asked as she studied herself in the bathroom mirror.

"I think so, at least." Pansy nodded.

"Maybe I should get contacts... What do you think?" Harry asked.

"What on earth are contacts?" Pansy looked baffled.

"A muggle invention." Harry explained. "They're small lenses you put directly on your eye to correct your vision. They aren't noticeable when worn."

"That's a really interesting idea..." Pansy said." You should definitely get some."

"Maybe I will this summer. Do wizards have ways of correcting eyesight?"

"Well... yes." The blonde witch said as she finished brushing out the tangles in the other girl's hair. "But it's very dangerous and very expensive."

"How so?" Harry titled her head.. "What are the dangers?"

"If your body rejects the potion... death is one possible outcome. Another is temporary or permanent blindness. Not to mention the potion has to be tailored to the drinker's needs. Different causes of vision problems, degree of vision impairment... These things need to be accounted for, which makes in difficult to brew... So it's not really worth it." Pansy explained.

"Death? Blindness?" Harry gulped. "I'll pass... Was this ever commonly used?"

"In the beginning it was, yes. Before anyone went permanently blind or died." Pansy winced. "And there is no way to tell if your body will reject the potion and kill or blind you. It's not super common, but it happened enough for it to fall out of use. I mean, it's still legal to brew and take, but only the richer families can afford to have it brewed for them, and they aren't willing to risk it."

"Yeah, I'll stick with contacts."Harry muttered as she stood. She observed herself in the mirror, turning her head from side to side. "Anyways, I look good, yeah?"

"You look absolutely amazing. Tom will be all over you." Pansy winked.

"I would hope not. That could get him in quite a bit of trouble." Harry deadpanned.

"Oh. Right." Pansy rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "Well, he'll want to be."

"Good to know." Harry giggled.

"Where are you meeting him?" Pansy asked.

"Outside the shrieking shack."

Pansy wrinkled her nose. "Romantic."

Harry lightly smacked her in response.

Not much later Harry left the castle for Hogsmeade. She climbed into a thestral drawn carriage and waited for it to start moving. After a couple of third years climbed in, it finally did so. Harry spent the short ride staring at the thestrals. They weren't conventionally attractive creatures, but Harry thought they were interesting.

Once they arrived in Hogsmeade, she climbed out of the carriage and patted one of the thestrals on the head. The third years looked at her strangely, but Harry ignored them. They'd obviously never seen anyone die.

She walked through the village until she reached the shrieking shack and Tom. Once she was standing in front of him, she gave him a tight hug, which he returned with one arm.

"Hello, dearest." He murmured into her ear.

"Hi, Tom!" Harry grinned and let go of her boyfriend. "What are we doing today?"

"Whatever you want, brat."

"Oh. Um, okay. How about Honeydukes?" The young witch suggested.

"Alright." The faux-blond nodded. "Pick out whatever you want. Its on me."

"Really?" Harry beamed up at him. "You mean it?"

"I wouldn't have said so if I didn't mean it, brat." Tom said with an eye roll.

As they walked from the shack towards the candy store, Harry wished she could hold Tom's hand. They were walking fairly close together, and her hand occasionally brushed his, but she knew that was as close as she would get. They walked in silence. No words were needed, they were simply enjoying each other's company.

Honeydukes was crowded as usual. Harry eyed the shelves of colourful candies of every sort. She browsed through the aisles, occasionally plucking something from the shelves. Tom smirked as he followed behind her. When she was finished she brought her armful of candy to the checkout counter and Tom dutifully paid for it.

The couple decided to walk through the streets after that. They entered stores that looked interesting and browsed around. Tom bought Harry some new books, a new blouse and a few trinkets. He shrunk them down and carried them in a small, durable, feather light paper bag.

After an hour of walking around, the couple grew hungry and decided to dine at The Three Broomsticks. They strolled through the village leisurely to their destination- they weren't too hungry and they had time to waste.

They arrived shortly thereafter and found a surprise waiting for them just outside the pub/inn.

"Sirius?!" Harry blurted. "What are you doing here?"

"Hi, Fawn." Sirius smiled, but his goddaughter could tell he wasn't as happy as he tried to appear. "Don't look so happy to see me."

"I'm sorry." she apologized while Tom glared at the older wizard. "I just wasn't expecting to see you. What are you doing here?"

"You haven't been answering my letters." Sirius said with a frown. His tone was slightly accusing. "So I thought I'd come see you. I figured you would come stop by the Three Broomsticks eventually, so I decided to wait outside."

"You know, Sirius... Maybe there's a reason I haven't been answering your letters." The young witch retorted.

"Yeah, because Riddle here is-" Sirius started but was cut off by Tom.

"Black, Harriet, this is not the place for this." He pointedly looked at the passersby. "Let's rent a room inside and discuss this where no one can overhear."

"Good idea, Tom." Harry said. "Let's go."

The three walked into The Three Broomsticks in an awkward silence. Tom went up to Madam Rosmerta and easily charmed her into providing the three of them a room for an hour or two. His mission accomplished, Tom returned to Sirius and Harry. He told them to follow him as he lead them to the room they were assigned.

Tom shoved the key into the lock and turned it. He pushed the door open and entered. Harry and Sirius followed him. The artificial blond closed the door behind them and cast a privacy ward as his girlfriend and her godfather sat down. Harry chose the edge of the bed, and Sirius sank into a plush red arm chair. Tom walked over to Harry and stood by her protectively.

The room was silent for what seemed like ages to Harry. Finally, Sirius spoke up.

"Why haven't you been answering my letters?"

"Oh, I don't know." Harry said sarcastically. "Maybe because you keep accusing Tom of being dark and making me dark too. You keep telling me how evil dark is and that since parseltongue is dark, I shouldn't speak it. You try to convince me to give up my friends because you think they're dark... I could go on, but I really don't think I need to."

"Dark _is_ evil, Harry!" Sirius protested.

"Doesn't mean Tom and I are dark." Harry shot back with a scowl. It was true, though. Considering there wasn't really such thing as "dark."

"He's Voldemort's grandson, Fawn! The descendent of your parents' killer!"

"Tom is not his grandfather!" Again, true. Tom was not his grandfather. His grandfather just wasn't who Sirius thought it was.

It was a game to Harry. Misleading people without actually lying.

"Just like you're not your mother, Sirius. Or any of your other relatives." Harry added when Sirius shook his head at her.

"That's different! Besides, he's a parselmouth! A dark ability! And he uses it all the time and is influencing you to use it too!"

"So what if we're parselmouths? The ability doesn't harm anyone." Harry crossed her arms and glared. "It's hereditary. We can't help it, anyways."

"It's dark! Voldemort, Salazar Slytherin, a bunch of dark wizards used it!" Sirius cried.

"Many dark wizards spoke English." Tom said sarcastically. "Is that evil now, too?"

"I—well—no-" The animagus stammered. He took a deep breath before continuing. "It's still dark."

"Fine!" Harry threw her hands up in defeat. "It's dark! But it doesn't hurt anyone, so I'll use it if I please!"

"It hurts _you_ though!" Sirius protested. "Dark magic, like parseltongue, warps you. I don't want to see you lost to it."

"Sirius..." Harry sighed. She knew Sirius wasn't doing this for petty reasons. He believed everything he said, and was genuinely concerned for her. But that didn't mean she would cave just to placate him. Tom was too important to her to give up for something she knew wasn't even true.

"Fawn... Harry..." Sirius stared at her earnestly, his gaze silently pleading with her to agree with him.

"Look," Harry ran her hand through her hair. "I'm sorry Sirius, but we obviously disagree with each other about this. My opinion won't change and I doubt yours will, either. But stop trying to "save" me. I don't need or _want_ to be saved from Tom. I'm happy the way things are. At this rate you'll force me to choose between you and him, and I don't think you would like my choice."

Tom smirked at Sirius. The older man scowled at Tom for a moment. He wiped the expression off his face when he turned back to Harry.

"Harry, I'm your godfather. You parents gave me the job to look out for you in their place. Would you really choose him over me?" Sirius' expression was pleading as he gazed at his goddaughter.

"In a heartbeat." Harry answered. She looked up at Tom adoringly. Her feelings for the man were clearly written on her face. "He's the most important person in my life."

Staring directly into Sirius' eyes, Tom possessively placed a hand on the back of Harry's neck and started rubbing his thumb in small circles. Harry leaned into his touch without hesitation. It was a blatant demonstration of ownership on Tom's part, and a subconscious show of acceptance on Harry's.

"Oh, no... no, no, no..." Sirius said, his eyes widening in understanding. "You—you bastard! How dare you take advantage of her like that!"

Sirius shot to his feet and stalked towards Tom. The elder wizard gripped his wand tightly as he pointed it at the perceived threat. The sole witch in the room quickly moved in front of her boyfriend protectively.

"He most certainly is _not_ taking advantage of me!" she snarled.

"Don't be ridiculous, Fawn. He's so much older than you—what he's doing is wrong, and he knows it!" Sirius snarled.

"Tell me, Black. What is it you think I'm doing to her?" Tom was clearly amused by the situation. He twirled his wand in his fingers. The nonchalant action aggravated Sirius. The blond wasn't even taking him seriously. "Well? Speak up."

"You—You know what you're doing! You're taking advantage of her! You're hurting her!" Sirius was so disgusted with the whole thing to be more specific—he did not want to think of what Tom was doing to his goddaughter in detail.

"That's very vague, Black. Please, be more specific." Tom taunted.

"Tom!" Harry hissed. Couldn't Tom see this was not the time to provoke Sirius?

"Sexually!" Sirius blurted. "You're taking advantage of her sexually!"

Harry's face turned crimson. Whether from embarrassment or fury, she wasn't completely sure. Probably both.

"Sirius! He is not! Why the hell would you even say that?!"

"It's obvious by the way you look at him and how.. _proud_, how _satisfied _it makes him. The way he looks at you and touches you. It all makes sense, why else would a man be so interested in a girl your age?" Sirius laughed humourlessly "I can't believe I didn't realize it sooner..."

"You have no idea what you're talking about, you mangy mutt!" Tom snarled. He gently pushed Harry behind him and pointed his wand in Sirius' face. "I assure you, I have absolutely no interest in children. Perhaps if you weren't so blinded by prejudice, you'd be able to see that I see a lot of myself in Harriet and want to give her the help I never received."

"Right, I'm sure. Even if that's true, she doesn't need your help anymore." The animagus argued. "She has me now!"

"Let's leave that decision up to Harriet. So long as she wants me in her life, I'll be here. I suggest you get used to it."

"Will you two just stop it already? Sirius, don't jump to conclusions. I'm fine, Tom has never hurt me. And you!" She whirled around and glared at Tom. "No more provoking him. It just makes things worse."

"Fine. He obviously has you brainwashed, Harry! I know he's doing and I'll do whatever I can to make sure you're safe!" Having said his piece, Sirius stormed out of the room.

Harry blankly started at the spot Sirius vacated. After a long moment she closed her jade eyes and sighed. "What do we do now?"

"Nothing." Tom said with a shrug. "His accusations are baseless. We have nothing to worry about. Come, I think it's time we eat."

Neither Tom nor Harry noticed the beetle fly out of the room after them.

-x-

It didn't happen the next day. Or the next. In fact, it didn't happen until a week after the Hogsmeade visit.

Harry was seated at the Slytherin table eating her breakfast while waiting for the day's mail to be delivered. She heard the telltale sound of flapping wings just as she was finishing her meal. She looked up and watched the owls fly into the great hall. Several of the nocturnal birds dropped off letters or packages, but most were delivering the latest copy of The Daily Prophet.

Harry wiped her mouth with a napkin and picked up the newspaper. She paled as soon as she read the headline on the front page.

"_Tom Riddle: Politician or Paedophile_? " It read. Below the headline was a picture of Harry and Tom. The photo was obviously taken at the recent Hogsmeade visit. It depicted the two of them hugging in front of the shrieking shack.

The young witch quickly read the article. It spoke of her argument with Sirius and quoted her saying that Tom was the most important person in her life, and Tom saying that he would be there for Harry as long as she wanted him. The author of the article, Rita Skeeter, claimed she spoke with Sirius Black about the situation and he confirmed that Harry believed they were dating, despite his disapproval. According to Skeeter, he debated contacting the authorities, but he couldn't prove it, so in the end decided against it.

Skeeter made it sound it sound like the argument started over her relationship with Tom. It didn't talk about the couple's denials, nor did it mention the initial argument. Harry wasn't sure if it was a good thing the latter point was left out or not.

Harry growled. The reporter took bits and pieces of what happened and completely warped things. The jade eyed witch ripped the newspaper in half and crumpled it into a ball. She threw it onto the floor and stomped out of the great hall.

She took Slytherin's passage to the common room and ran to her dorm. She took out her diary and saw she already had a message from Tom.

_I'll take care of it. Don't worry, dearest._

_I can't believe Sirius did this! _She wrote even though she knew Tom wouldn't respond any time soon.

She felt so humiliated. She wasn't surprised Skeeter went and wrote another article making her look bad. That seemed to be the woman's favourite hobby, after all. She was much more upset that Sirius actually helped Skeeter with the article. Didn't he realize how it would affect her?

Harry knew her godfather wanted to take down Tom, but the fact that Sirius would take him down at her expense was not something she thought he was capable of.

Harry spent the day hiding in bed, cuddling with Hank with her curtains drawn. Pansy tried to talk to her, but Harry had fallen into a restless sleep.

The young witch woke to Hank licking her ears. She pushed the dog off of her and checked her diary for a message from Tom. To her relief, he had finally written to her again.

The faux-blond threatened The Daily Prophet into printing a retraction (again). He also convinced them to publish an article the following day based on an interview he gave Terrence Higgs. The newspaper promised to put the story on the front page.

_What are you going to do about Sirius? _Harry asked, biting the tip of her quill.

_For the most part, nothing. _Tom responded. _In my interview I basically said that he's likely still mentally unstable from his stay in Azkaban and anything he said shouldn't be immediately accepted as the truth. Especially considering his personal dislike of me._

_I was contacted by the aurors, though. Shortly after I left The Prophet's office they summoned me to the DMLE for questioning. Don't worry, dearest. After speaking with me they came to the conclusion that Black was just trying to discredit me._

_Oh Merlin. _Harry wrote. _I can't believe this. I definitely won't be forgiving Sirius any time soon._

-x-

The next day Harry finally left her dorm. She walked to the great hall with her head held high and Draco and Pansy flanking her. The two acted as bodyguards, glaring at anyone who dared so much as look in Harry's direction.

The trio sat down at the Slytherin table, but only Draco and Pansy actually ate breakfast. Harry just anxiously pushed her eggs around on her plate while waiting for the owl post to arrive.

As soon as her copy of the newspaper was dropped in front of her, Harry unrolled it and started reading.

"_Riddle Responds: "I have no interest in children._" was splashed across the front page. Harry skimmed through the article and let out a sigh of relief. Higgs had covered many of the things Skeeter left out, such as context for the quotes. It went into detail about how Sirius was an unreliable source for several reasons including his stint in Azkaban and the fact that he is politically opposed to Tom.

After finishing the article, Harry gobbled up her eggs in a hurry and proceeded to her dorm. She was still being stared at, but she felt that she could handle it now.

She grabbed her bag from the foot of her bed and turned to leave, only to come face to face with Daphne Greengrass. Harry almost shrieked in surprise—she didn't notice the other girl enter the dorm.

"What do you want _now, _Greengrass?"

"I knew it wasn't true." Daphne smirked. "Tom Riddle definitely wouldn't be interested in a slut like you."

"Oh, as opposed to a slut like _you_?" Harry sneered in response.

"Take that back, skank!" Daphne glared at Harry. "Unlike you, I don't throw myself at anyone and anything."

"You don't know shit, Greengrass. Just shut your face before you make yourself look like a fool." Harry paused. "Might be a bit too late for that, though."

"Why you...!"

Harry rolled her eyes and pushed passed her roommate, her bag slung over her shoulder.

She made her way down the halls to the private common room. She hoped Pansy wasn't too mad at her for going off on her own. She could handle herself, and she doubted anyone would come after her after she faced a dragon and won.

"Harry!" Pansy glared at the jade eyed witch as she entered the room. "You know you aren't supposed to go off on your own! What if something happens again?"

Harry sighed. "Pansy, I'm fine. I can take care of myself."

"...Whatever. Are you okay?" Pansy changed the subject. "Skeeter is a vile woman and shouldn't be allowed to write for a gossip column, let alone The Prophet."

"I agree." Fleur crossed her arms and wrinkled her nose. "She's horrible."

"I wonder how she knew so much though." Hermione said.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked sharply.

"She quoted you and Tom several times in the article, but she couldn't have been there to hear them."

"Sirius told her." Harry accused crossly. Her godfather was someone she trusted, and he just went off and gossiped about her to a reporter.

"Are you sure? IT sounded like she knew beforehand and only went to Sirius for confirmation about your alleged relationship." The bushy haired brunette frowned.

"That is the impression I got as well." Fleur added.

Harry looked towards Pansy for her opinion, but the blonde just shrugged.

"It's like she had you bugged or something." Hermione said. "Of course, muggle technology doesn't work in Hogsmeade so that's impossible..."

"Bugged?" Pansy gave the muggleborn a strange look. "What does that even mean?"

Hermione went on to explain how muggle technology was used for spying and that for some reason, they called it "bugging." Pansy and Fleur, who was also ignorant of muggle technology, nodded in understanding/

"So how does she do it?" Fleur wondered.

Of the four gathered girls, none had the answer.

-x-

Time passed slowly. There were still rumours about Harry and Tom, but few people actually believed them. Calling Harry a slut had finally fallen out of fashion, and the aforementioned witch was quite relieved with said development.

One day in early May, Harry walked into the Shrieking Shack to meet Tom and found that he wasn't alone. Cowering at his side, was a house elf.

Harry's eyes narrowed. "What's with the house elf?"

Noticing Harry's suspicious demeanour, Tom quickly explained.

"I'm going to teach you to test for compulsion charms."

"Really!?" Harry's face lit up, losing all reservations. With this, she and Hermione could make progress with their campaign to save the house elves.

The faux-blond gave her a look that she translated to "Yes, really. Why else would I have a house elf with me?"

Harry blushed. "Right, so what do I do?"

Tom showed his human horcrux the wand movements and incantation. He had her repeat them until he was satisfied that she could perfectly mimic the movements and pronunciation.

"If compulsions are placed on the subject, they will glow orange. If not, they will glow blue. The brighter the orange glow, the stronger the compulsion charms." Tom explained. "Try it on the house elf."

The witch nodded. She pointed her wand at the house elf and attempted to cast the spell. The house elf flinched squeaked, but nothing happened.

She frowned and tried again. And again, and again. At one point she thought she saw a faint glow around the elf, but it faded before she could identify the colour.

She scowled as she kept trying, growing more and more frustrated with her inability to cast the spell. What would Tom think? She couldn't cast the spell. She bet he got it on his first try. It

"Stop." The heir of Slytherin ordered. "Frustration will get you nowhere. Take a break and calm down."

"How am I supposed to calm down?" Harry snarled. "I can't do this fucking spell."

"I can think of a few ways, dearest..." Tom purred with a wicked smirk.

It wasn't until late May that Harry finally managed to successfully cast the spell. The elf glowed bright orange.

Harry's hand covered her mouth in horror, her wand clattering to the floor. Tom stared at the elf thoughtfully.

"It would appear you were right, dearest." He commented. His gaze shifted to the terrified elf. "Leave."

The elf squeaked and disappeared with a pop, all to eager to follow that specific command.

"Oh, Tom! This is horrible!" Harry wailed. "Those poor creatures really are being controlled and enslaved!"

Tom rolled his eyes, which his girlfriend fortunately didn't notice in her despair. He placed his hand on her shoulder, gaining her attention.

"Don't worry, when I—we're in control of the ministry, we can change things."

"You're right, Tom." Harry nodded. She embraced Tom, kissed him on the cheek, and headed for the exit.

"I have to go tell Hermione!" she called over her shoulder. "Bye, Tom!"

Tom scowled as he watched her leave. "I don't know why she cares so much about the bloody creatures."

-x-

The last week of May the three champions were called down to the quidditch pitch.

A look of horror graced Harry's features as the quidditch pitch came into view. Instead of the flatness she was used to, they found it covered it short, green shrubs.

"What. The. Hell." the youngest champion muttered. "I can't believe this..."

Viktor nodded solemnly, but Fleur merely rolled her eyes at her quidditch obsessed companions.

"Hello there!" Bagman called cheerily from across the pitch. "Over here, champions!"

The trio made their way towards the ministry official, climbing over shrubs when necessary. As they drew nearer, Bagman noticed the horrified expressions the two celebrities wore. He hastily assured them that the pitch would be back to normal after the task.

He explained that the last task was a cross between a maze, a race, and an obstacle course. The obstacles included creatures provided by Hagrid, enchantments to be broken, physical obstacles, and more.

Harry stopped paying attention after Bagman informed them the objective was to reach the triwizard cup in the middle of the maze. Her mind drifted to the fact that Hagrid would be providing the creatures. She desperately hoped he wasn't given free reign. She could only imagine what he would come up with.

A light tap on her shoulder brought Harry out of her thoughts. She saw Fleur smiling down at her, a knowing look in the part-veela's eyes. The younger witch looked away from her fellow champion and noticed Viktor was already walking towards the castle and Bagman was nowhere in sight.

Harry ducked her head and blushed. Fleur sighed and started walking off. Harry trailed behind her.

-x-

After returning from the quidditch pitch Harry immediately informed Tom about the third task and asked for help training.

Tom agreed to help her, but only by suggesting spells she ought to learn. She would have to research the spells and practice them on her own. He also suggested that she work on her physical fitness to increase her speed and stamina, as part of the task was a race.

With Hermione's help she created a fitness plan that would increase her speed and endurance. She took to it religiously and spent free time practising spells and duelling with her Slytherin friends.

Harry's advanced studies were put on hold while she trained for the final task. She may be in first place, but one the other champions were in the maze points ceased to matter. She could be going in with a measly ten points and still win.

Since the day the champions learned the details of the task, they rarely saw each other. They were still friendly when they encountered each other, but it was an unspoken agreement that they were friends second and competitors first.

-x-

The morning of June 24th Harry was informed that the champions were to gather in a room just off the Great Hall after breakfast to see their families.

Harry quickly gobbled up her breakfast and bounced to the designated room. She was excited to see the Parkinsons and was willing to bet Tom would be there too.

She was the first of the champions to arrive. She scanned the room, barely noticing the families of her competitors, and froze when her gaze landed on the group there for her. Standing next to the Parkinsons and Tom, was Sirius. He was glaring at Tom and the Parkinsons, who were scowling back at him. Sirius' hand was twitching as if he was barely restraining himself from grabbing his wand.

They hadn't noticed her yet and Harry was debating whether or not to make an escape. Just as she came to the decision to avoid them all, her godfather noticed her.

"Fawn!" Sirius called, his glare morphing into a beaming grin. "How are you? You still haven't been responding to any of my letters."

Harry threw her hands up and shrugged sarcastically. "Well I wonder why! Maybe because you jumped to conclusions and then went off and shared them with Rita Skeeter!"

Sirius' grin fell. "Hey, Rita already knew about the whole thing when she came to me."

"Oh, like that makes it all okay!" Harry rolled her eyes, but tucked away that bit of information for later.

"Look Fawn, I'm sorry." The dog animagus pleaded. "I just—I mean... I don't want you to get hurt like that again. Like with Lockhart."

Harry flinched and ducked her head at the mention of her former professor. She liked to forget the whole incident with the vile man had never occurred.

"Please, Harry. I love you. I just want to protect you." he continued. The teen witch studied her godfather's face, her posture stiff and arms crossed. After a tense moment she relaxed, believing the man to be sincere.

"Fine. I forgive you. But if you do something like that again I won't." Harry relented. As she said this, Sirius' face turned from desperate, to relieved, to apprehensive.

He nodded. "Thank you, Harry. But even if you won't forgive me, I'd still do what I think is necessary to protect you. I'd rather have you mad but safe than the alternative."

"Sirius, I don't need your protection. I can take care of myself." Harry protested, but deep down she was touched by the sentiment.

"How touching." Tom muttered, earning a glare from Sirius. "Now that that is taken care of, perhaps you'd like to greet your guardians, Harriet? And perhaps myself as well?"

Realizing how rude she had been to her other guests, Harry blushed. She took the chance to glance around the room, and noticed the guests of the other champions' pointedly looking away from her group. She noticed that at some point Fleur and Viktor had arrived. The jade eyed teen's blush deepened. She forgot there were other people in the room.

"Sorry, Tom, Aunt Emma, Uncle Edgar." she apologized sheepishly. "I'm really excited to see you all. It feels like it has been forever."

"It's okay, dear. It happens to the best of us." Emma Parkinson smiled warmly. "Why don't you introduce us to your fellow champions? I understand you've become friends?"

"Good idea." Harry smiled at her aunt's suggestion. Fleur and Viktor approached Harry and her family with their own guests upon overhearing the suggestion.

"Viktor, Fleur, this is Tom, my guardians, Emma and Edgar Parkinson, and my godfather, Sirius Black." Harry gestured to each person as she named them. "Guys, this is Fleur Delacour and Viktor Krum."

Fleur and Krum smiled and took turns introducing their own families. After introductions, small talk was made for the next half hour before anyone was able to find an opportunity to politely excuse themselves.

Harry was rather reluctant to break off from the larger group as now she was the only buffer between her godfather and the Parkinsons and Tom, and when she did, it was as bad as she anticipated.

The day passed dreadfully slow. Sirius continuously made snide comments and shared stories about pranking Slytherins in his school days. In return, the Parkinsons shared some embarrassing anecdotes from Sirius' childhood. Apparently, Edgar's older sister, Zinnia, used to babysit the Black brothers when they were toddlers.

In between anecdotes, Tom made slightly suggestive comments to Harry in an attempt to rile up Sirius. He would then elaborate on his comment, putting it in an entirely innocent light.

By dinner Harry was ready to rip her hair out. This was supposed to be about her, but all they were doing was antagonizing each other. Thankfully, dinner was a public affair so her guests politely ignored one another while they ate, though Sirius did complain about sitting at the Slytherin table.

Still, dinner wasn't exactly pleasant. Sirius was sulking. The elder Parkinsons were talking to their daughter. Tom was making allies and connections among the sixth and seventh years. And Harry? She was violently stabbing her meal to let out her frustrations.

-x-

The three champions followed Ludo Bagman down to the quidditch pitch, which was completely unrecognizable. It was covered with hedges approximately four metres high. The hedge in front of them had a gap in the middle.

"Nervous?" Fleur asked, elbowing Harry lightly as the stands filled.

"No, I'm just relieved to be away from my guests." Harry sighed. "Sirius doesn't get along with the others. They kept trying to rile each other up."

Fleur and Viktor laughed, but stopped when several professors approached them.

McGonagall explained that several professors would be patrolling outside the maze during the task. She informed them that if they needed rescuing they could send up red sparks and someone would come to their aid.

With the safety measures covered, Bagman cast sonorus on himself and started introducing the champions and announcing their standing in the tournament.

"Harry, you're in the lead, so you enter first." Bagman said. "So... on my whistle... Three, two, one!"

The whistle sounded and Harry took off into the maze.

-o-

AN: Yeah, yeah, I know. IT's been months. MY explanation? A bout of writer's block lasting through February and March, and then I got a job. Yeah. So less free time. But I did have this chapter written out by hand and finished by mid-May. Same for the next chapter. But it's boring typing it up and I just wasn't motivated to.

This is not beta'd. And none of my chapters will be in the future. Why? Because I lost the email address of the person who agreed to beta for me. And I just want to get this story out as fast as possible. If there are errors, meh. If you can't stand the errors, don't read it. Sorry.

Oh. I made a decision about lemons. I won't write any. Why? Because to be honest, I imagine Harry being willing to sleep with Tom fairly early on, and as long as she says yes, he won't say no. And I'm not comfortable writing about a 15 year old having sex with a 21 year old. BUT! If you guys want to write a lemon for this story, go ahead and I'll link it on my profile.

Now to cover some things in this chapter: I am not bashing Sirius. At least not intentionally. While talking to Skeeter might not have been the wisest move, his intentions were good. He loves Harry. And he disagrees with Tom on a moral level. Things get messy when that happens.

He really believes that magic labelled dark is harmful to the user. He genuinely believes Tom is taking advantage of Harry. And he's right about that second point. Harry is 14, and Tom has basically been grooming her for years to be his lover. He does care about her, in his own way. I'm not saying Tom doesn't. I'm saying that a relationship between a 14 year old and a 20 year old is problematic without the manipulative and power based elements. And Sirius is right to be concerned. He is right to have an issue with that relationship. Did he handle it the best? No. But due to his history with the ministry, he wasn't really willing to take it to the aurors himself. So when Rita gave him the opportunity to do _something_ he took it.

As for Tom—he doesn't operate on the same moral code as most. As far as he's concerned, as long as Harry is willing and wants it, he'll do what he wants. It doesn't matter if he manipulated her into it, if she says yes willingly, he'll take it. Also, he sees her as the closest thing to his equal, and thus he doesn't really consider her age when he makes decisions involving her.

I'm not saying a six year age gap would always be an issue in a relationship. In ten years it won't be a problematic aspect of their relationship. But 14 year old's brains are still developing. They are undergoing physical, mental and hormonal changes. There is a big difference between a teenager and a twenty year old. Once both parties finished maturing physically and mentally, there isn't really an issue.

If you disagree, fine. But that is my take on the situation.

Also, in regards to glasses: people always have this magic potion that fixes eyesight. Right uh-huh. That's why there are so many witches and wizards that wear glasses. Harry, Dumbledore, James, Percy, etc. I think if there was a way, Dumbledore would at least have his fixed. Percy—it might be expensive, so he may not have been able to afford it. James? He could afford it, and I personally see him being a bit vain. But he had glasses until he died. That said, it would be ridiculous if in thousands of years of magic being practised, no one tried to fix it.

This chapter was sort of fillerish. Sorry. But I wanted to develop the relationship between Sirius and Harry a bit more.

Thanks for sticking with me guys. I love you all.

Xo

ELiza


	27. Renewal, Revival, Resurrection

Riddled

By: Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter: 27: Renewal, Revival, Resurrection

-o-

After putting some distance between her and the other competitors, Harry slowed down from her jog after several turns. She had reached the first fork in the maze.

She knew the centre of the maze was to the north west of the entrance, so she cast the four point spell to determine which way she needed to go. It pointed straight into the hedge, but she could only go left or right.

Or could she? Harry cancelled the spell and pointed her wand at the hedge in front of her. A jet of fire was released from her wand, but the hedge absorbed it and remained intact. The youngest champion tried a few more spells, none of them effective. She was sure some of the illegal spells she knew would work, but they weren't an option under the circumstances. She wasn't sure how much other people could see of the task.

She sighed and turned left. She followed the path until she found an opportunity to go north. As she came around another corner, she slammed into something solid, but didn't see anything in her way. The teenage witch stepped back and poked at the invisible wall. Frowning, she bent down and picked up a rock. She threw it at the wall and it bounced off. She picked it up again and aimed higher. It landed on the other side.

After throwing a few more rocks, Harry deduced that the wall was at least half a metre shorter than the hedges. She put her wand in her mouth to free her hands and attempted to climb the hedge. To her relief, the hedge was more than sturdy enough for her to scale. Once she was high enough, she moved horizontally and dropped down on the other side of the wall.

She continued north, using her familiarity with the size of the pitch to estimate how close she was to the centre of it.

As Harry navigated through the maze she dealt with several different obstacles. The boggart she handled much the same as she did back in her third year. The vines that tried to grab hold of her and drag her into the hedge were dealt with a cutting curse. A miniature swamp was crossed by transfiguring the ground solid. There were several creatures she had to defeat or out smart, but none of them stopped her for long.

At one point red sparks had been sent into the air, signalling that either Fleur or Viktor were out of the competition.

Harry turned a corner and saw Fleur heading right towards her. The younger witch stopped running and pulled out her wand. She cast a shield charm just in time to block the dark mauve spell Fleur sent her way. Fleur cast another spell at Harry after she lowered her shield to mount a counter attack. Said spell was easily dodged by the dark haired girl who in return sent off three spells in quick succession. The spells Harry cast were nothing permanently damaging, just a bone breaking curse, a hex that numbed the person's body, making it difficult to move, and a mild blinding jinx.

Fleur dodged the first two spells, but in the darkness missed the navy blue beam of the blinding jinx. While she was disoriented from the loss of vision, Harry recast the numbing hex and took off running. The two spells would wear off in a few minutes, so she wanted to put as much distance between herself and the elder witch before she recovered. Harry could have taken Fleur completely out of the competition, but with Viktor out that would mean she had a guaranteed win. The Gryffindor part of her didn't want the challenge to end though. The risk of losing gave her a rush, and she wanted to hold on to that feeling. She knew Tom and the other Slytherins would think she was being irrational, and she had to agree with them. But the hat had considered placing her in Gryffindor for a reason.

Once there was a sufficient distance between herself and Fleur, Harry took a moment to figure out her position on the pitch. She was pretty sure she was a little too far north, so she turned south at the next available opportunity.

She hit a few dead ends but didn't even blink at them. She just turned around and tried another path.

Harry turned back from yet another dead end and saw a small gap in the hedges that she had missed before. It was at most thirty centimetres wide and there was another hedge directly opposite the opening, so it was easy to miss, especially when coupled with the darkness of the evening.

The young witch was glad that for once her small stature provided an advantage. It was hard to imagine the Durmstrang champion squeezing through the opening.

After squeezing through the gap, she saw that there was only one direction to go—to the right. She had a feeling she was close to the cup, so she broke into a jog. She was starting to get tired, so moving any faster wasn't a good idea in case she came across Fleur again or ran into more physically draining obstacles. She turned left at he next fork without even thinking and saw the gleaming trophy only metres away.

Victory was hers.

Pride and elation flooded through Harry, giving her an extra boost to start sprinting. Seconds later, she reached the cup. She grabbed it without hesitation, and the world started to spin.

-x-

Harry landed with a thud. When the world stopped spinning she took a moment to look around. She was definitely no longer at Hogwarts. Instead she was in a small, overgrown graveyard.

The teen witch wasn't certain if this was part of the task, so she held her wand at the ready while she searched the area for a clue as to why she was here and what she was supposed to do. She spotted an abnormally large tombstone a couple metres away from her. It was about two metres tall and obviously marked the grave of someone rich or important. Probably both.

Harry approached it cautiously and paled when she saw who it belonged to, realizing exactly where she was. Her scar started to burn. She needed to get out of here.

Before she could formulate a plan to get back to Hogwarts, her wand was wrenched from her hand. She looked behind her and saw a cloaked figure across the yard. The unidentified person was holding a wand in one hand and what appeared to be a baby with his or her other arm. Harry didn't know if it would bring her back, but she had no clue what else to do other than try to reach the cup and hope it would help her escape. She tried willing it to come to her, but it seemed to be completely resistant to her commands. So she ran. She was almost back to the cup when she lost consciousness. She had been hit with a stunner.

When the young witch returned to consciousness she found herself tied to the large tombstone. She looked around and saw the... baby (or whatever it was) on the ground a little ways away. Meanwhile the cloaked figure was pushing a huge stone cauldron towards her. The hood had fallen back, revealing an unfamiliar man.

"Hurry!" the bundle on the ground ordered. Its voice was cold and high pitched. It was no baby.

"Yes, master! Sorry, master!" the man grovelled. He hurried to light a fire beneath the cauldron. Whatever the cauldron contained heated rapidly.

The substance inside bubbled and sparked while steam rose from the cauldron. She saw the man walk over to the not-baby. He unbundled it and the sight of the _thing_ combined with the smell from the simmering cauldron almost made Harry vomit.

Harry was fairly certain the thing was a golem. It was unbelievably thin, scaly, hairless and had a flat, snake like face, all characteristics of a golem. Coupled with the fact that Voldemort was without a body and needed a vessel, it made sense for it to be one. Golems didn't hold up very long though, so Harry hazarded a guess that Voldemort would be getting a new body soon.

Soon as in, in a few minutes.

The man—who was obviously a death eater—lifted the golem and gently placed it in the boiling cauldron. Harry hoped it drowned or burned, even thought she knew the servant wouldn't have put his master in there if it would hurt him. She hoped it hurt as much as her bindings, at least.

The death eater stepped back from the cauldron and raised his wand. "Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son."

The ground cracked and bone fragments rose from the grave and into the cauldron. The potion turned an ugly shade of blue and more sparks danced on the surface.

The man pulled a dagger from his robes and pocketed his wand. "Flesh of the servant, willingly given, you will renew your master." He raised his right hand over the cauldron and cut it off without hesitation. He cried out in pain, but grinned as the potion turned red and seemed to almost glow.

The now crippled man turned towards the bound witch, still clutching the dagger. "Blood of the enemy, forcibly taken, you will resurrect your foe." Harry glared at the man as he made a large cut on her forearm and dropped the knife. As he fumbled in his pocket for a crystal phial, Harry spit on him. He glared, but stayed focused on the task of collecting her blood.

Once he collected enough blood, the death eater approached the cauldron once more and poured in the blood. The potion turned a blinding white and the whole area was engulfed in a thick, putrid smelling steam. The burning in Harry's scar increased.

The steam thinned and Harry was able to see the outline of a tall but thin figure.

"Robe me, Barty." Voldemort commanded. His servant rushed over with a robe and helped his master dress as best he could.

Now dressed, Voldemort stepped out of the now empty cauldron and stared through the thinning mist at Harry.

Without flinching, she stared back at him. She couldn't help but think that if she hadn't seen proof, she would not believe the man before her was once handsome.

The dark lord looked away from the child who had once nearly vanquished him. He assessed his new body, flexing his fingers and running them over his torso and limbs. Finally, a thin white hand dipped into he pocket of his robes and pulled out his yew wand and gently stroked it. The dark lord looked almost reverent.

Without warning Voldemort whipped around to face the kneeling servant and smiled almost fondly.

"You have done well, Barty." the dark lord praised. Barty smiled but remained silent as the dark lord continued. He knew better than to interrupt his master. "Hold out your arm."

Barty held out his left arm. Voldemort pushed his death eater's sleeve over his elbow revealing an angry red mark shaped like a skull with a snake slithering out of its mouth.

"It's back..." The hairless man murmured. "They will have noticed it... and now we shall see... now we shall know."

Voldemort placed his index finger on Barty's dark mark and it slowly turned black. Voldemort smirked in satisfaction.

"I wonder... How many will be brave enough to return? How many will be idiotic enough not to?" Voldemort asked rhetorically, and glared at Barty when the man opened his mouth to respond.

The dark lord began to pace. "I wonder, Harriet Potter, how much you know about me. I wonder how many lies my so-called grandson has told you."

"I know all about you, Tom Marvolo Riddle." Harry sneered from the tombstone. "And I know the truth about my Tom, too."

"Do you really?" Voldemort raised a hairless eyebrow, confident that Harry didn't know much about both himself and his first horcrux.

"Oh, I know." Harry cackled. "I know how Tom came to be, why he came to be, and I know that he's not the only one."

Voldemort's eyes narrowed and he pointed his wand at Harry for a moment before a rather grotesque grin formed on his face and he laughed. It was a disturbing sound.

"Then you know, little girl, that for me to truly die, your precious Tom needs to die as well."

Harry glared at him but she didn't get the chance to respond. The graveyard was filled with the sound of several large cracks as Voldemort's followers appeared.

One dropped to his knees and crawled towards his master, kissing the hem of his lord's robe when he was close enough. Others soon followed, backing away to form a circle after they displayed their subservience. The each seemed to have assigned position in the circle, leaving gaps where imprisoned or dead death eaters would have stood.

Harry barely noticed Voldemort as he spoke to his followers. She was too distracted by the point Voldemort made about Tom needing to die for his other self to die as well. She hardly listened as the hideous man explained his resurrection from. From the little she processed, she gathered that Barty was the son of Bartemius Crouch, he had impersonated Moody, entered her name in the tournament as a fourth champion, tampered with the Triwizard Cup, and was supposed to be dead.

It wasn't until she felt unimaginable pain that she focused again. She screamed and pulled at her bonds, trying to curl into the fetal position. She didn't even notice the bonds breaking her skin through the burn of the torture curse. Tears leaked from her jade eyes and she tried to beg for the pain to end, but the only sound that would come out of her mouth was scream.

And then it stopped.

Voldemort then started a monologue detailing how the idea of a little girl being stronger than him was ridiculous, how it was pure chance that she survived that night and that he would prove it.

"Barty, untie the girl and give her, her wand." he commanded.

Barty hurried to do as his master bid him.

With her bonds removed, Harry slumped forwards onto the ground. She was roughly pulled up and her wand was shoved in her hand.

The warmth of her wand filled Harry with courage. Voldemort was arrogant. He didn't believe she was a threat. That meant he wouldn't be taking her seriously. He would be playing with her.

"You know how to duel, I assume?" he sneered.

"Of course." Harry answered stiffly.

"Well then, Harriet Potter. Bow to death." he taunted has he shallowly bowed. In return Harry smiled and curtsied mockingly. "As impudent as ever I see. Well, now we begin."

Harry leaped to the side to avoid the spell racing towards her. She rolled away from the second curse and got to her feet. She barely dodged the next beam of light and fired off a killing curse.

Voldemort easily side stepped the curse. "My, my... dark magic? I wouldn't have expected Dumbledore's chosen one to stoop to such a level."

"Funny thing." Harry said. "I'm not actually the chosen one—" she blocked an incoming spell. "—The prophecy refers to a boy. You didn't hear that part, but... now you know! So how about you stop trying to kill me and we go our separate ways. How does that sound?"

Voldemort shot a killing curse at her in response.

"Well fine!" Harry fired off a curse that liquifies a person's brain. "It was worth a shot."

Harry dodged several more spells, slowly approaching the Triwizard cup. She shot back several curses of her own until she was hit in the arm by a bone shattering curse. She screamed and dropped her wand, the shattered bones in her arm and hand made it impossible for her to keep her grip.

Before she could pick it up, her opponent summoned her wand to his side.

He started gloating, convinced that Harry had no chance without her wand. His followers cackled and jeered. When their master snapped the holly wand in two and waved its broken pieces at her, they applauded.

Harry took that moment to sprint towards the Triwizard cup. It was her only hope. From what she gathered, when Barty tampered with it, he left the original portkey spell and merely added another on top of it. She i

Voldemort started throwing curses at her as she ran. A cutting curse of some sort of grazed her right shoulder, but it didn't slow her down in the least. She was pumped full of adrenaline, but she was sure she'd really feel it later.

She lunged for the cup when it was in sight and felt the pulling sensation of a portkey. She grinned at Voldemort as she disappeared.

-x-

Harry was deposited in front of the maze's entrance. She noticed the stadium was in chaos. The judges were screeching at each other, the spectators seemed to be panicking, Fleur was standing near the judges and appeared to be barely holding back tears, and Tom was looking downright _murderous_ as he gripped his wand tightly.

He was by Harry's side in seconds. Upon noticing her severe injuries he called for a medic, even as he did his best to heal what he could.

"He's back, Tom... He's back." Harry croaked out as she clutched Tom's hand with her undamaged one.

"I know, dearest. I felt it." He whispered. "You're okay now. Madam Pomfrey is on her way and I'm doing what I can."

"Tom... Tom..." She whimpered as Sirius, Fleur, Dumbledore, and the rest of the judges reached her side.

"Sh... It's okay, Harriet. You're okay." Tom soothed as she finally blacked out.

-x-

The moment Voldemort gained a body, Tom knew. It was something he was anticipating and preparing for, so he wasn't overly concerned at the moment.

Not much later, the second jet of red sparks erupted in the sky. This time from the centre of the maze.

Tom hoped it was the Delacour girl who sent them up and not Harriet, but he still wasn't concerned.

The faux blond watched as McGonagall mounted a broom and flew over the maze to the source of the sparks. Moments after she descended, a silver cat ran out of the maze to where the judges sat. Dumbledore quickly send his own patronus to his deputy and then waved his wand in a semicircle. The towering hedges began to shrink until they were only about thirty centimetres tall.

The shrunken hedges revealed the Beauxbatons champion and McGonagall standing near an empty pedestal. The Triwizard cup and Harriet were nowhere to be seen.

The judges began conversing heatedly while Fleur and McGonagall climbed over the hedges to exit the maze. Tom pushed past the other spectators, swiftly making his way towards the judges and the professors who had joined them.

"—must have been tampered with!" Bagman was saying. "It was supposed to portkey the victor to the entrance of the maze."

"Who placed it?" Tom demanded, drawing the attention of the bickering judges and educators.

"Alastor did." Dumbledore answered.

"Where is he?" Tom's nostrils flared in anger. He was fairly certain he knew what happened to his partner. The fact that Harriet's disappearance coincided with the return of his other self was telling enough.

It was then that the gathered adults realized one of their own was missing..

"Surely he wouldn't—" McGonagall gasped, voicing what everyone was thinking.

"I'm afraid he is the most likely suspect." Dumbledore said gravely. "Though it leaves the question of his motives."

"The people are getting restless." Fudge, who was filling in for the absent Bartemius Crouch, fretted. "What do we do?"

"I'll take care of it." Dumbledore pointed his wand at his throught and began speaking. "Sonorus. Please remain calm and seated. It would appear the cup, which was supposed to bring the winner out of the maze malfunctioned. There is no need to worry."

"Albus!" Snape hissed. "I believe there is reason to worry"

"What is it, my boy?" The aged wizard prodded.

Instead of answering so everyone could hear, the potions master leaned in and whispered something in Dumbledore's ear.

"I see. That is grave news indeed." Dumbledore murmured as he placed his hand to his chin. "Igor, did you feel it as well?"

"Yes." The head of Durmstrang said stiffly.

"What is it? What are you talking about?" Fudge demanded with crossed arms and a tapping foot.

Tom was fairly certain that he knew what they were talking about, and Dumbledore confirmed it.

"It would appear that Voldemort has returned and summoned his followers through the dark mark." Dumbledore informed them. "It is likely young Harry is involved in some way."

"That's ridiculous, Dumbledore!" the minister protested. "He's dead! He's been dead for more than a decade!"

"I always believed he never truly died that night. It would appear I was correct."

"Really, Albus," Fudge spluttered. "It's impossible to return from the dead—"

"Are you daft, minister?" Snape snapped. "Albus just said that he was never truly dea—"

"Severus!" the headmaster reprimanded.

Tom stopped listening. The minister was an idiot. He would deny the return of the Dark Lord until he was killed by the man. No new information was forthcoming, they just kept arguing in circles.

He stepped away from the group, his wand was clutched tightly in his hand. He saw Dumbledore glance at him, but ignored him and closed his eyes. He focused on his connection with Harriet. After a few moments he managed to break through her occlumency walls and was able to see everything she saw. Unfortunately he was too far away to take control of her body to help her.

It didn't look good. Harriet shouted something at his other self as she dodged a killing curse. She kept dodging spells and sending back her own as she manoeuvred towards the Triwizard cup. She was hoping it would get her out of there.

The former horcrux bit his tongue to hold back the curses he wanted to spit out when his partner's wand was taken from her. He watched as Voldemort broke it in half and taunted her.

He was relieved when Harriet started sprinting towards the cup. He tapped into his other self's mind, anticipating his next move and subtly guiding Harriet to move in a certain way to avoid the spellfire.

Tom broke his connection with both of those who shared his soul as he felt the portkey take hold of Harriet. He opened his eyes and seconds later saw her appear just outside where she had initially entered the maze.

He was by her side in seconds and called for a medic as soon as he saw how severely she was injured. While waiting for Madam Pomfrey to arrive he did his best to heal what he could, holding her uninjured hand in his free one.

"He's back, Tom. He's back."

Tom did his best to soothe her as others arrived and she finally passed out.

-x-

Tom sat by his partner's side in the hospital wing. It had been two hours and she had yet to awaken.

Madam Pomfrey had to vanish the shattered bones in Harry's arm and hand and dosed her with skelegrow to regrow the bones. She treated the cuts and bruises scattered across her body that Tom hadn't healed before she arrived on the scene.

The matron muttered about how horrible and dangerous the whole tournament was while she tended to her sleeping patient. Tom refrained from pointing out that Harry didn't actually sustain the injuries the matron was treating in the tournament. It had been hard enough convincing the matron to allow him to stay, even after helping with Harry's shoulder wound.

As the three hour mark approached, loud voices and footsteps could be heard from the hall leading to the hospital wing.

The doors burst open, revealing Dumbledore, Snape, and Fudge.

"Honestly!" The rotund minister cried. "Just wake the girl up already so we can have this mess sorted. She'll tell you that you-know-who isn't involved once and for all!"

"Cornelius, young Harry was severely injured. She needs her rest." Dumbledore protested as he tried to guide the minister out of the infirmary.

"Unhand me, Dumbledore! Or I'll charge you with assault!" Fudge roared as he waved his wand in the older wizard's face.

"Lower your voice, minister. You'll wake her—" Dumbledore tried to reason with her.

"Exactly!" The politician said loudly. "Then she can—"

"Ugh! Shut up." A feminine voice cried. "My head is killing me.

The three men turned towards the only occupied bed. Harry was sitting up with a disgruntled look on her face and Tom was glaring at the minister.

"Ah! My dear girl, I apologize." Fudge simpered. "I'm afraid I must hear what happened. It simply cannot wait any longer."

Harry looked to her boyfriend, who nodded at her, silently telling her to get it over with.

"I was taken to a graveyard when I grabbed the cup. I was disarmed by a man I later learned was Barty Crouch Jr.—"

"Impossible! He died in Azkaban!"

"Well, apparently not. He escaped and someone—his mother I think—took his place. Anyways, I was then tied up to a large tombstone and he started performing a ritual that, among other things, required my blood." She shivered and stopped speaking.

"What did it do?" Tom asked softly. He already knew, but he needed her to tell the others.

"It revived Voldemort—" Harry was once again cut off by the minister for magic.

"Preposterous!" He declared. "Impossible!"

"It's true." The young witch glared. "He then summoned his followers that avoided Azkaban and revealed that Crouch Jr. had been impersonating Moody all year and was the one to enter me as a fourth champion."

"Stop telling tales, girl!"

"I'm not! Voldemort then challenged me to a duel. He ended up taking my wand and snapping it! I barely made it to the cup and escaped!" She shouted. "I'll even take veritaserum to prove I'm not lying!"

"That would only prove that you're delusional." Fudge scoffed. "Perhaps Crouch did escape Azkaban and kidnap you, but I highly doubt you-know-who is involved. Him coming back to life goes against the laws of magic!"

"You're an idiot, Fudge." Tom snapped. "The dark mark has returned and two former death eaters confirmed they were summoned."

"I—wha—Tom, my boy!" Fudge spluttered. "You can't possibly believe this—this silly tale!"

"I believe Harriet." Tom said. "I will stand by what she says."

The aforementioned girl gave Tom a smile of gratitude. Fudge looked betrayed.

"Really, minister. How else do you explain the happenings with the dark mark?" Fudge missed that it was a rhetorical question.

"Crouch!" Fudge cried desperately. "He must have figured out how to manipulate the one on his arm to affect the others!"

"So you admit that he escaped Azkaban and isn't dead?" Harry sneered.

"Well it's far more likely than you-know-who returning!" Fudge retorted. "Honestly, I thought better of you Tom."

"I wish I could say I thought better of you too, but the truth is I never did. I'm not surprised you want to close your eyes and pretend that if you can't see it, it can't see you." Tom said coldly to his former ally. It was no matter that he had lost his standing with the minister. The man was a fool and would be replaced soon enough. Many of Tom's allies were former death eaters who would help along his plans at the ministry without Fudge or his other self knowing.

While going against the ministry would be detrimental in the short term, it would eventually come out that he had been telling the truth. When that happened people would rush to support him and get in his good graces once more.

"Well!" Fudge lifted his chin. "You had a good thing going, Riddle, but it's over now. Even if you come back, begging for my help in getting to where you were before, I won't help you."

"You see, minister, that's where you're wrong." He sneered and crossed his arms. "You'd be surprised how many people will stand with me."

Fudge chose to ignore him and faced Dumbledore and Snape, who had remained quiet during the exchange. "Dumbledore, I will be sending aurors in tomorrow to search Moody's office. Hopefully that will shine some light on the whole situation."

Fudge left before anyone could say anything, shouting over his shoulder that he could see himself out.

-x-

Shortly after Fudge left, the exhausted champion fell back asleep while Tom spoke quietly with the two remaining men.

"Mr. Riddle, now that Harry is asleep, I was wondering if I could speak with you in my office?" Dumbledore requested.

"Of course, sir." Tom smiled politely. "But please, do call me Tom."

Surprise flickered across the elder wizard's face for a fraction of a second, but it was quickly covered with a benign smile. "Very well then, Tom. You may call me Albus. Shall we go?"

Dumbledore led the younger man through the castle's halls to his office. He gave the password—some sweet Tom believed Harriet to be rather fond of—and ushered Tom inside. Tom looked around the room, noting the various artifacts and trinkets and that all the portrait frames were empty.

Dumbledore sat behinds his desk and motioned for Tom to take the plush seat in front of it.

"Tom, may I speak with you frankly?" Dumbledore leaned on his desk and steepled his fingers.

"Of course Albus." Tom nodded seriously.

Dumbledore stared at him down his crooked nose. The characteristic twinkle in his blue eyes was absent. The silence stretched for several minutes. If Tom had been anyone else he would have been fidgeting under the headmaster's unwavering gaze. But he was Tom Riddle, so he continued to sit straight backed in the rather comfortable chair with his expression carefully schooled into a politely neutral expression.

"Very well then." Dumbledore nodded to himself. "I shan't dance around the issue.

"I know exactly who, and more importantly _what_ you are, Tom Marvolo Riddle."

-o-

AN: Oh yes. I am evil. Muahahahaha.

Anyways, I thought I'd let you know that I started university last month and as such don't have as much time to write. So updates will continue to be slow. Sorry.

I tried to contrast Barty and Wormtail in the revival scene. Whereas Wormtail was doing it out of fear, Barty was doing it completely and utterly willingly. He was happy to do it.

While writing this I ended up thinking about the whole portkey business. How did Harry know that grabbing the cup would get him back to Hogwarts in canon? It doesn't seem like something to be sure of. I tried to show that Harriet here wasn't sure if it would, but it was the only thing she could think of possibly getting her out of there, especially after losing her wand.

I'm also going to admit I've forgotten several of the little details. Sorry. So if there are any inconsistencies let me know and I'll do my best to, well, if not fix it mention that I made a mistake in an AN and try not to make it again.

Speaking of errors, if I make an error about the timeline or something that you don't think is purposely inconsistent with the books, should I be...er... consistent with the inconsistency and go by what I said, or fix it in future chapters and go back and fix things when I'm finished the story?

Thanks to everyone reading this. Your support means the world to me.

Lots of love,

Eliza


	28. The Enemy of My Enemy

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

Chapter 28: The Enemy of My Enemy

-o-

"I'm afraid I'm not—" Tom began to protest. He looked genuine in his denial, but Albus Dumbledore was not fooled.

"Drop the act, Tom. I'm not going to tell anyone your secret. Nor do I have any intentions of charging you with any crimes." Dumbledore said neutrally as he leaned back in his chair.

Tom's face morphed into a scowl. He also leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs. "And—assuming you are correct—why wouldn't you?"

"Because I was wrong about you." Tom stared at the headmaster in disbelief. The old man chuckled. "Is it so hard to believe I can admit to being wrong?"

"When you say you were wrong about me, what exactly do you mean?" The faux blond asked for clarification.

"I believed you were incapable of caring for anyone but yourself, let alone loving them." Dumbledore smiled, his blue eyes twinkling behind his half-moon spectacles. "But your relationship with Harry has proven me wrong. You genuinely love her."

"What exactly are you implying, old man?" Tom's eyes narrowed. "That I'm in a romantic relationship with a fourteen year old?"

"Of course not Tom." Dumbledore shook his head with a smile. "I'm saying you are. While Harry is a bit young, you aren't forcing her and she is certainly a good influence on you."

"So you have changed your mind about me because you believe I'm in love with Harriet?" he stared at Dumbledore incredulously.

"There are other reasons, of course." Dumbledore admitted. "But that is the main one."

"And the others?" Tom demanded.

"Unlike Voldemort, you are going about changing things legally. While I may not agree with the changes, I can respect the wishes of the people. I am fairly certain there is only one major crime you've committed since you gained a body, no torturing or killing muggles for fun. You have been more accepting of muggleborns, though I'm certain you're still not overly fond of them..." Dumbledore trailed off. "Need I go on?"

"Fine. You've made your point." Tom crossed arms, scowling. "What is it you want?"

"An alliance." Dumbledore declared. "I would like your help defeating Voldemort."

Tom was surprised, but was careful not to show it. Dumbledore requesting his help was not something he anticipated. Indeed, it made a great deal of sense. They both wanted Voldemort gone, and who knew him better than a piece of himself? But there was one problem...

"You say you know what I am, Dumbledore." Tom said slowly, carefully. "What is it you think I am?"

"A horcrux." Dumbledore leaned forward, his elbows on his desk, chin resting on his clasped hands. "One of several. Likely the first."

"Then you are aware, that if I am truly a horcrux—not that I'm saying I am—Voldemort can't truly die so long as I live." Tom pointed out.

"I am aware." The elderly wizard nodded. "However I am fairly certain you have discovered a way to take care of him that doesn't involve your own death. Am I wrong?"

"You're not wrong." Tom said evenly. "However, let us say we defeat Voldemort. How do I know you and your so called "chosen one" aren't going to turn on Harriet and me?"

"You don't." Dumbledore tilted his head to the side in acknowledgement. "But then I don't know you won't betray us either."

"What would I gain by joining you?" Tom was interested, depending on what his former professor could offer him. He wasn't stupid though. He would make sure the Longbottom boy died so he couldn't be double crossed. It would, of course, be at someone else's hand. He couldn't let Dumbledore trace it back to him, after all.

"I've been planning on retiring from politics, you know. I think it's best that the younger generations shape the laws of our world. They are more in touch with the future, I think."

Tom considered what Dumbledore said. He was one of his his biggest opponents. If he backed out, those who followed him would splinter off into smaller groups. Not to mention, if Tom was seen with him, people might assume that the headmaster agreed with his views.

"Go on." Tom kept a bored look on his face. There was no need for Dumbledore to know how tempted he was. He would get as much from the man as he could.

"I have collected many rare, ancient texts over the years. I have began to run out of room. Perhaps you would be interested in some? We would need to be discreet, of course. The ministry wouldn't approve of some of the books..."

This was also potentially of interest to Tom. He needed to do more research before he could get rid of his other self, and access to Dumbledore's private library could possibly be very helpful, even if not for his primary objective.

But he needed more information.

"Why wouldn't the ministry approve of these books?"

"Some of them deal with... let's say _sensitive _subject matter. Things like blood magic, illegal rituals, a bit of theory about necromancy... soul magic. Things like that."

"I'm surprised you have collected texts of that nature." It was phrased as a statement, but both knew it was a question.

"I believe it wise to know the weaknesses and strengths of all magic. Not to mention much of the magic that falls into those subjects isn't as bad as the ministry tries to convince the general public. Some of it is perfectly harmless." Dumbledore shook his head. "It's unfortunate the ministry isn't more open minded."

"I wouldn't have thought you felt that way, headmaster." Tom said. "I was under the impression you agreed with the ministry's stance on the subject."

"While I have no issue with some illegal magic, there is much I disapprove of. There are many spells that cause nought but harm, and many rituals that call for horrible acts to be performed." Dumbledore sighed. "Magic that requires harming other people and magic was created for that purpose is what I disapprove of."

"I see. Well then, Dumbledore. I accept your offer of alliance."

"In that case, I must insist you call me Albus. Lemon drop?"

-x-

After the meeting with Dumbledore, the faux blond returned to Harry's side. He sat by her for the rest of the night, not bothering to try and sleep at all.

Madam Pomfrey bustled into the infirmary at six in the morning. She checked on her sleeping patient and then scolded Tom for staying up all night. Tom smiled charmingly and thanked her for her concern.

It wasn't until half past eight that Harry started to wake. Madam Pomfrey pounced on her before the jade eyed teen could even greet Tom. The medi-witch hassled her with questions about how she felt and whether or not she'd woken during the night.

When Harry told her about the late night visit from the minister and Dumbledore, Madam Pomfrey was apoplectic with rage. She lectured Tom for a good ten minutes, and then promptly sent him to bed.

Harry smiled nervously at the irate woman, but she merely smiled warmly at Harry and offered her breakfast. Harry accepted, but found it difficult to move her right arm and had without pain when she tried to eat.

"That is expected." The matron assured her. "Your muscles and tendons were severely damaged by the bone fragments. They are healed, but still tender. Not to mention the after effects of the cruciatus curse..."

Harry nodded and attempted to eat her breakfast with her left hand. It was slow going, but she managed to consume the entire meal in a reasonable time frame.

Once she was fed, Madam Pomfrey sent her to the shower. She offered to help the injured witch, but Harry hastily refused.

She scrubbed herself clean to the best of her ability and soaked in the warm water for nearly twenty minutes, contemplating the events of the previous day.

She drained the tub and wrapped a fluffy white towel around herself. After brushing her teeth with her left hand, Harry stared in the mirror.

She had a thick scar on her right shoulder. It was an angry red colour and had thin, dark grey lines spreading out of it like veins. The nearly black scar lines felt lumpy as she brushed over them.

As she did so, she noticed a much thinner white scar on her forearm. Harry frowned. A cut like the one she had received shouldn't have scarred... unless the dagger wasn't a normal one. While the young witch wasn't happy with her skin's new flaw, she had to admit it was preferable to the ugly scar on her shoulder.

Harry inspected the rest of her body, but found no other new scars or imperfections. She sighed and dressed herself in a fresh hospital gown. She frowned when she noticed the dark lines weren't completely covered by the collar. She fiddled with it until she had as much of the grotesque mark covered as possible, but still several dark lines peeked out.

She hesitantly stepped out of the bathroom and called for Madam Pomfrey. The woman hurried out of her office and ushered Harry back into a freshly made bed.

"Ma'am... about my shoulder..." Harry tugged on her collar as she spoke.

"It was a nasty curse, dear. I've done what I can with the help of Mr. Riddle." The healer's expression was one of sympathy.

"So it will be like this forever?"

"Not quite. Mr. Riddle said the dark colour should fade, but otherwise yes." The healer's gaze dropped to the floor. "I'm afraid I'm not very familiar with the curse and could only heal what I could based on the information Mr. Riddle provided me with."

"So it will look like normal scar tissue?" Harry asked for clarification.

"Yes, but it will take about a month or two." Harry nodded at the elder witch's estimation. She wouldn't be able to wear tank tops this summer, but least it would be so horrible forever.

The healer went over the rest of the injuries Harry had sustained, how they were treated, described the potion regime she would need to take for the next fortnight and prescribed some cream for her shoulder.

"Can I go now?" Harry enquired hopefully.

"Only if by "now" you mean in forty-eight hours." the matron said dryly.

Harry pouted.

-x-

True to her word, Madam Pomfrey released the teen witch two days later, much to the relief of both of them. Harry had begun to drive the older witch crazy with her begging to be let go.

Tom, Pansy, Hermione, Sirius and several others had been frequent visitors, but there was not much that could be discussed in the hospital wing.

As such, Harry, Tom, Draco, Hermione, and the Parkinsons were gathered in the private common room under extensive wards.

Harry and Tom sat on a small sofa across from the Parkinson family, who were seated on a slightly larger one. Hermione was seated to her best friend's right, and Draco occupied the chair opposite the muggleborn.

After several minutes of tense silence, Tom finally spoke.

"Since my grandfather has returned, precautions need to be taken." Tom glanced at the Parkinsons. "Assuming there are no lingering loyalties."

"No," Edgar declared, his eyes steely. "Family always comes first, and Harry is family."

Harry smiled warmly at her guardians, but Tom pressed the Parkinsons conviction.

"Voldemort does not take kindly to traitors."

"We are aware, but that has little sway on our decision." Emma affirmed.

"Very well. Then your best option is to fall of the face of the map for the summer. I will of course do what I can to aid you. Do you have any properties others are unaware of?"

Edgar and Emma glanced at each other and nodded. "There is one that may work."

"Excellent. It would be best to hide it with the fidelius charm." Tom recommended. "I also suggest not leaving the property without my approval. I would suggest Harriet or myself be the secret keeper."

"What do we do until the charm is cast?" Edgar asked.

"Dumbledore has given us permission to stay at Hogwarts until the term ends in three weeks. We will secure your location before then." Tom's gaze fell on Draco. "Your parents aren't likely to side against my grandfather at this point, and it is likely he will be a frequent guest at your manor. Avoid him. It would be best to publicly cut ties with the Parkinsons and Harriet before you leave."

"What? Why?" Draco's eyes widened.

"Are you daft, boy? It is not safe for you to consort with people Voldemort considers traitors and enemies." Tom sneered at Draco, who nodded with pink cheeks.

"As for myself, Harriet, and Miss Granger, we will be going to a secure location directly from Hogwarts."

"What about my parents?" Hermione asked. "They're expecting me."

"It's already taken care of. They have been informed you will be undergoing preliminary training for an apprenticeship." Tom told her.

"An apprenticeship? In what?"

"Nothing." Tom rolled his eyes. "Apprenticeships fell out of use about eight-hundred years ago, once Hogwarts was seen as the best and most comprehensive education a witch or wizard could receive in the United Kingdom. They were for children who's parents were rich enough to hire the best of the best to teach them. They still occur in some parts of the world, but even then it is rare. Your parents have no idea of this and it sounds suitably prestigious."

"Oh." the muggleborn nodded.

"Now then, Emma, Edgar, I will meet with you in three days time to make more specific plans for your security. Miss Parkinson, Mr. Malfoy, I suggest the two of you say your goodbyes and work on staging your break up. I need to speak with Harriet alone, Miss Granger, so if you would also excuse us..." The five mentioned saw the order for what it was and quickly excused themselves.

Tom was silent for several moments after the door clicked shut. Just as Harry started to fidget impatiently, he spoke.

"The headmaster approached me while you were in the hospital wing." He began to twirl his yew and dragon heartstring wand in his hand. "It would appear he is aware of my true identity."

Harry's eyes widened in panic. "What? Are you serious?"

"Yes." Tom inclined his head and sheathed his wand in its holster. He pulled her onto his lap."Worry not, dearest. He has no intentions of exposing me or offing me in the foreseeable future."

"Then what did he want?"

"An alliance, apparently. He is the leader of an organization dedicated to fighting my other self. We have joined him, for now." Tom explained. "We will be staying at the headquarters this summer."

"Why would you agree to join him?" Harry scrunched up her face and looked up at her boyfriend. "Why did he _want_ you to join him?"

"To answer your second question," Tom wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. "He believes he misjudged me and stands a better chance of winning if he only needs to fight one of us at a time. Of course, he didn't actually say the latter, but it was easy enough to infer.

"That is also part of the reason I agreed to the alliance. Battling one opponent at a time is easier than battling two. As my other self is the more challenging opponent, it makes sense to ally with Dumbledore rather than him."

"I see. And it looks better to be on Dumbledore's side, right?" Harry deduced as she rested her chin on Tom's shoulder.

"Exactly. He will also be giving my access to some rare texts and stepping out of politics." Tom ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sure he's formulating plans to off us as soon as my other self is gone, though."

"That sounds like him. Manipulative bastard. Do you think he'll tell Longbottom the truth about you?"

Tom considered the question for a moment. "He will have to. It's just a matter of before or after we defeat my other self. I would assume he will inform the boy shortly before Voldemort's demise.

"If he tells the boy too soon, it would jeopardize his alliance with me. Longbottom is unlikely to work with us if he knows the truth. But the boy already knows only he can defeat the dark lord for good, so he needs to know enough not to question why ultimately, he won't be facing my other self."

"But for now you're safe from them." Harry concluded, but he shook his head.

"No. Dumbledore knows about my horcruxes. He is likely to tell Longbottom about them before he tells the boy I am one of them. I need to move them and protect them better." Tom scowled. "I'm sure Dumbledore intends to destroy them behind my back so the boy can kill me with relative ease after we kill Voldemort."

"Tom..." Harry bit her lip and raised her left hand to trace the lightning bolt on her forehead. "Do you think Dumbledore knows I'm a horcrux?"

Harry stared at her boyfriend as he tightened his old on her. The adult wizard was silent for a long moment. Harry opened her mouth to ask again, but cut herself off when Tom finally spoke.

"I wouldn't put it past him."

-x-

Draco and Pansy had a rather viscous break up in the Slytherin common room a few days after the meeting with Tom. It had escalated to the point that hexes were thrown and their head of house was called in to stop the fight. As rehearsed, Draco called Pansy a blood traitor and implied his change of heart about her was due to her stance against the dark lord. They ended up serving (separate) detentions until their last day at Hogwarts.

Even though she knew it wasn't really over between her and her fellow blond, Pansy's tears over the break up were not at all fake. She wouldn't be able to contact her not-quite-ex-boyfriend at all during the summer, and who knew what would happen to him. His father was one of Voldemort's staunchest supporters and Draco was likely to be exposed to dark lord at some point. On top of that, when school started back up again they could only meet in secret, lest she put him in danger.

Harry did her best to console Pansy, but there was nothing she could think to say to make her friend feel better, and she couldn't even pretend to understand how hard the break up was. While she knew she didn't want to lose Tom like that, the idea of not being with him forever wasn't something she had ever really considered.

Hermione, however, was of more help to Pansy. Though the circumstances were different, the sole Gryffindor of their trio had also parted with her boyfriend. After much thought, the brunette decided that while she did like Viktor, she still liked Marcus more. Coupled with the fact that Viktor lived in a different country and had a time consuming career which made spending time with him difficult, Hermione decided it was best to end it. Still, she was sad her relationship had come to an end, even if it was for the best.

While her friends grieved over their romances, Harry, Tom, and the elder Parkinsons visited a remote cottage. It was small, but luxurious and could easily house three people for a prolonged period of time. Harry thought it was rather charming with it's stone exterior, large windows and blue shingled roof. After inspecting the protections already in place on the cottage, Tom cast the fidelius charm, with Harry taking the role of secret keeper. The faux-blond cast several other additional wards as well for extra protection. Not even a house elf would be able to enter without permission.

With the cottage secured, Tom and Harry helped furnish and stock it with supplies. Arrangements were made for food and other necessities to be dropped off by Tom or Harry on a biweekly basis. Once everything was taken care of, Harry and Tom bid the older couple farewell, and promised to drop off Pansy on the last day of term.

-x-

There was much speculation in the Daily Prophet about what happened during the third task in the days after. Initially, the only thing the ministry would say was that it was still being looked into. Aurors had stormed the school the morning after the third task and searched Moody's office. They found said man at the bottom of a trunk looking half starved and as if he hadn't bathed in months. They also found several bottles of polyjuice potion hidden in an extensively locked cabinet.

After recuperating in the hospital wing, Moody gave his statement to the aurors. He had been assaulted in his home near the end of August and locked in the trunk by Barty Crouch Jr. Barty was apparently very talkative and had bragged about how he escaped Azkaban to his prisoner.

With a respected, even if paranoid, auror claiming Barty Crouch Jr. was alive and involved, the ministry's official stance was that the escaped convict was behind the abduction of Harriet Potter and the unexpected turn of the third task. Still, they remained tight lipped about the details, mostly because they hadn't invented any yet.

For the most part, even the students at Hogwarts were in the dark. Very few knew of his return outside Harry's circle, however some students had received vague letters from their parents hinting at his return. These students were all children of death eaters, of course.

The ignorance lasted until the leaving feast. After awarding the house cup to Slytherin, the headmaster made an announcement.

"Students, I am aware there has been much speculation about what happened during the third task of the tournament, and feel it is best to inform you of what has occurred.

"Lord Voldemort has returned. During the third task, Miss Potter was kidnapped by Bartemius Crouch Jr. who was impersonating Alastor Moody for nearly a year. He took her because he required her for a ritual to revive his master. He succeeded. Miss Potter dueled Voldemort and barely escaped with her life.

"Unfortunately, the ministry does not want me to tell you this. The minister refuses to acknowledge that Voldemort has returned. I warn you all to be cautious and stand together in these difficult times. Though dark times are ahead of us, I ask you to have courage and be safe."

Whispers broke out in the great hall. People stared and pointed at Harry who pointedly ignored them. At least they couldn't see her dark, web like scars. She had covered them with makeup. Unfortunately, they proved resistant to magic.

She wished she didn't have to be at the feast. Tom had warned her of Dumbledore's announcement, but refused to let her skip the feast. To make matters worse, Tom was off enjoying dinner in the rooms Dumbledore had allotted him for his stay at the school.

She saw several reactions to the news out of the corner of her eye. Many people looked disbelieving, while others uncertain or scared. Neville Longbottom, in particular, looked terrified. She snorted in amusement. It seemed Dumbledore hadn't informed his chosen one beforehand. She almost felt bad for the boy.

When the headmaster finally dismissed the students, Harry was the first student out of the hall. Hermione and Pansy flanked her sides, giving dirty looks to anyone who dared get close to their friend.

Instead of going to their common rooms, Harry lead them to Tom. She entered his quarters and collapsed on a sofa. Her boyfriend raised an eyebrow at her.

"I'm staying here for the night." she declared. "I don't want to deal with the other students. Especially Greengrass. Knowing her she'd say something snarky."

"Oh, and leave me there alone?" Pansy snorted.

"You think it's bad for you guys? At least you would have each other! My housemates would eat me alive!" Hermione crossed her arms.

"You guys can stay here too, right Tom?" Harry batted her lashes at him. He sighed and nodded.

"Awesome! Slumber party!" Harry cheered.

-x-

The three witches and Tom slept in the next morning. None of them were taking the Hogwarts Express to London, so they had no reason to wake early. The three girls killed time until all the other students had left so they could fetch their luggage from their dorms without being bothered by other students.

After grabbing their luggage and heading to the gate, Harry whispered the location of the elder Parkinsons in Pansy's ear, and Tom side-along apparated them to the cottage. Harry briefly spoke with her guardians, bidding them farewell and promising to visit when Tom allowed her to.

From there, they returned to Hogwarts and gathered Hermione from the library, where she had opted to wait for them. Tom led them to the headmaster's office and gave the password.

"Ah, yes, I suppose it's already time, hm?" Dumbledore greeted. "You will be going to the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix at _Number 12 Grimmauld Place. _Rooms have been provided for you, and you'll find that there are several others staying there."

"Thank you, Albus. How will be departing?" Tom asked politely.

"Portkey." the aged wizard answered. He placed a worn out shoe on his desk. "The password is 'flapjack.'"

Only Tom managed to keep a straight face at Dumbledore's words. He reached for the portkey and motioned for Harry and Hermione to grab hold of it. Once both witches were ready, he muttered the password.

"Flapjack."

-o-

...is not my friend.

There you have it. I had this planned from the very beginning, so those of you who don't like Harry and Tom working with Dumbledore, tough. I hate Dumbledore bashing. I'm not saying he's perfect. He's far from it. But he's not evil. He does what he thinks is right, and what he feels needs to be done. He is willing to sacrifice one for the many. A lot of people criticize that, but then make Harry or whoever extremely selfish and such. I hate that. Dumbledore is also capable of admitting to his mistakes. He believes in forgiveness, redemption and the power of love.

I've started going back and editing old chapters myself. Ignore any mistakes you still find. I'm too lazy to really read through it more than once every once in a while, and I don't really trust someone to go through it without me re-reading it again, which is what I want to avoid in the first place.

Anywho, next we're moving into fifth year. I have part of the next chapter already written, and we're getting close to a scene I'm rather fond of.

Also, just a reminder, there will be no lemons, because Tom would totally sleep with Harry when she's underage and I'm not cool with writing that.

I've started a new poll in regards to this story. Feel free to vote if you want your opinion to be heard.

I'm done with my midterms. I got a 92 in calc and 97 in linear algebra &amp; vector geometry, so yay!

Best,

Eliza


	29. Preparations

Riddled

By Killing Curse Eyes

(in memory of a dear friend)

Chapter 29: Preparations

-o-

They landed with a thud in the kitchen of an old house. Well, Harry and Hermione landed with a thud. Tom of course, was the picture of composure. He helped Harry stand up, who in turn helped her friend stand.

They finished dusting themselves off just as the door burst open.

"Fawn!" Sirius grinned. "So good to see you! You too, Hermione."

"Sirius? What are you doing here?" Harry asked. She had not been aware he would be here. Not that it was a bad thing exactly, just that her boyfriend and her godfather being in the same place for prolonged periods of time didn't seem like a great idea.

"It's my house, isn't it?" Sirius said. Harry glanced at Tom, wondering if he had forgotten to tell her this, but judging by his expression, Dumbledore hadn't told him either.

"Oh. I didn't know. It... doesn't seem very you." Harry looked around the kitchen. It gave off a gloomy aura.

"Well, that's because it's a Black family property." The dog animagus grimaced. "But it was secure even before we added protections, and it's big enough for everyone who needs a place to stay."

"Who all needs a place to stay?" Tom inquired.

"It's good to have you here though, Harry." Sirius said, completely ignoring Tom. "It's how things should have been from the start."

Harry graciously chose not to comment that she didn't want to have been with him from the start and repeated Tom's question.

"Oh, well, the Weasleys will be here, so will Neville, though his grandmother opted not to come, and Mooney of course. Other order members might crash here every now and then, too." Sirius answered.

Harry and Hermione both made faces at the mention of the Weasleys and Neville. "Why are the Weasleys and Longbottom staying here?"

"Oh, well, Dumbledore said Neville will be a target, if not now then at some point, so it's best if he stays somewhere well protected. As for the Weasleys, with their connection to him they would eventually become a target too." Sirius answered.

"Oh."

"Well then, why don't I show you to your room?" Sirius smiled. "It's just this way..."

Sirius led them out of the kitchen but stopped when he realized Tom was following him as well. "Oh. Right. Kreacher!"

An old house elf appeared with a soft popping noise. "The blood traitorous master brings more mudbloods into The Noble House of Black. Kreacher's mistress would be horrified..."

"Quiet, you. Bring this guy to the far room." Sirius ordered, jabbing his thumb in Tom's direction.

"Kreacher will do as his unworthy master bids him and bring the mudblood to his room..." The elf muttered and started to walk off.

"I am _not_ a mu—ggleborn. I am a halfblood descended from Salazar Slytherin himself." Tom corrected the elf in a firm but polite tone. He wouldn't have bothered being polite, but his partner was there and she wouldn't be pleased if he spoke to the elf they way he wished to. It was only a small sacrifice for the girl, he figured. He followed after the elf but stopped after just a few steps.

"Ah, yes. Harriet," he called. She stopped following her godfather and faced him. "I'll be taking you to get a new wand tomorrow, and then help you with your... project."

Seeing his gaze shift to Kreacher as he spoke, she understood his meaning and beamed at him. "Really? Sounds great!"

Sirius looked at the younger wizard suspiciously, but Tom just smirked and walked after the elf. After prodding from Harry, he resumed leading the girls to their room.

-x-

The next morning Tom took Harry out to buy her new wand. Sirius tried to stop them from going by speaking of how dangerous it was for her to be out and about, but his goddaughter pointed out it was even more dangerous to be without a wand for a prolonged period of time when Voldemort was after her.

Sirius reluctantly agreed to the excursion, even as Tom muttered in parseltongue that they were going with or without his approval. Harry shot him a look at that, but he didn't even bat an eye.

The bell overhead chimed as they entered the dusty old wand shop. The teenage witch looked around as she waited for the wand maker to greet them. Her eyes snapped to the back of the store when she heard the sound of footsteps.

"Ah, yes, Mr. Riddle. Dragon heartstring and yew from the same tree as your grandfather's wand. I trust it is serving you well?" Ollivander peered at Tom curiously.

"It indeed has been." Tom smiled charmingly.

"And you, Miss Potter? Holly and phoenix feather, I believe?" he asked.

Harry winced. "I—well, it served me well."

"But not any longer?" Ollivander asked curiously. Few knew what happened to Harry's wand, and she realized he was probably assuming she was still in possession of her wand and it had stopped working for her. Such an occurrence was rare, but did happen.

"Well, it's kind of hard for it to serve me when Voldemort snapped it and didn't even give the pieces back." Harry deadpanned.

"I see... I assume that is why you two are here today?"

"That would be correct." Tom nodded.

"Well, then, let's get started..." The wand maker browsed the boxes piled on the shelves before selection one. "How about ten and three quarter inches, chestnut and dragon heartstring?"

It took nearly forty minutes for Ollivander to find a wand suitable to the young witch. In the end she was chosen by an aspen and phoenix feather wand, reasonably supple and twelve and a quarter inches.

They paid Ollivander for the wand and left. Harry held her new wand tightly. It felt even more right for her than her previous wand had. It was smoother than her old wand, and greatly resembled ivory. A wand for revolutionaries, she was told.

Well, she supposed helping Tom reshape the magical world counted as being a revolutionary.

"You certainly seem fond of your new wand." Tom said in amusement. The slight smile on his face was much more genuine than the fake one he'd given Ollivander. Harry hated his fake smiles.

"Where are we going now?" She asked instead of replying to her boyfriend's comment. "You said something about house elves?"

"Yes. You have confirmed that house elves have strong compulsion charms placed on them, but you still need to learn how to remove them. As such, I shall be teaching you to place compulsion charms on... _test subjects_. Once you can place reasonably strong compulsions, I will teach you to remove them." Tom explained. He could cast the compulsions for her to dispel himself, but he thought it was best that Harry learn to cast them in case she needed it in the future.

"Who are my test subjects?" She asked warily.

"Well, the final subjects are a surprise." A malicious smirk spread across the faux-blond's face. "But for now you shall be practising on random muggles in London."

"Alright." Harry nodded.

"Before we start on teaching you to cast compulsions, I think we have one more errand."

"Huh? What?" Harry stopped walking and scrunched her nose in confusion. Tom, who was a few steps in front of her, turned around and faced her, a smirk on his handsome face.

"I believe you mentioned something to me not to long ago." He said as he tapped the side of her glasses. "You wish to switch to contacts, did you not?"

"Yeah!" A smile spread over the young witch's face "You remembered."

"Of course I did. Come, I have already located a suitable establishment. It's not to far from the Alleys."

They walked through The Leaky Cauldron to muggle London. Tom lead Harry to a small optometrist's office a fifteen minute's walk away. With a brief application of the imperius curse, one of the waiting patients made an excuse to leave before her appointment and the receptionist was happy to give the duo the spot instead.

It didn't take long for the optometrist to check the witch's prescription and order the contacts for her. After they paid, they were told to come back in a week to pick them up.

Their second task complete, they left the eye doctor's and headed to an outdoor cafe. After the server delivered their order Tom cast several spells to prevent muggles from paying them any mind.

"Before we begin though, you will need to know some theory." Tom said. Harry smiled into her soda. He was going into what she privately thought of as professor mode again. "There are two aspects of the spell. The first is how strong the compulsion is. A weak compulsion charm can easily be fought off. You may feel the need, for example, to go to sleep, but can still decide not to follow it. A stronger one can be fought off, but it will be more difficult. It's all about willpower. Unfortunately for the victim, even if in general they have an equal or stronger will, the spell can amplify the caster's will if they know what they are doing.

"The second is how subtle the charm is. It is unlike the imperius curse, which not only increases the production of dopamine in the brain to make one feel carefree and happy, one is aware that they are being influenced, _commanded_, to do something. It's just difficult to fight back not only because of the way it affects your state of mind, but also because it _always_ amplifies the caster's will and by a greater amount.

"A compulsion charm, however, is not an overt command if done properly. It is not only possible to make the victim believe that what you're compelling them to do is their own idea, but not even difficult for someone who has a lot of practice with the spell.

"The most effective compulsion will be strong but completely unnoticeable to the victim. They are also the most difficult to cast. Weak, overt compulsions are the easiest to use.

"Generally, unless the compulsion is to do something continuously, which I believe is the case for house elves, it wears off once the victim has completed their task. They are often left wondering why they thought their actions were a good idea. Traces of the compulsion are detectable for a brief time even after one is no longer being compelled to do something. Any questions?"

"Er..." That was a lot of information. "How difficult is casting a compulsion in comparison to removing it?"

"The difference in difficulty is as wide as the distance between ourselves and muggles." Tom answered. "You should be able to pick this up quickly."

"How will you judge how well I cast the charm?"

"I will select your target and enter their mind. I will then be able to sense the compulsion's power."

"Right. Incantation and wand movement?"

"The incantation is 'anagkazo' and the movement is the greek letter alpha rotated ninety degrees counter clockwise followed by a downward slash and a jab." Tom demonstrated the movement as he spoke.

Gripping her new wand in her hand, Harry mimicked her boyfriend's motions. He shook his head and demonstrated again, more slowly. She tried once more and he nodded.

"Now repeat after me, 'an-ang-kad-zo'." Tom ordered.

"An-an-ka-zo." Harry repeated awkwardly.

Tom repeated the incantation slowly, walking the teen witch through the pronunciation one syllable at a time. After a few tries, she succeeded. Tom had her then put the motions and incantation together without using magic to perfect her timing.

Deeming her ready, Tom finally gave her a target. It was a rotund boy of about eight years old who reminded her of her cousin sitting a few tables over with a woman who was probably his mother. At Tom's suggestion, she decided to try and compel him to dump his soda into his mother's tea.

"Anagkazo." she whispered. The tip of her wand glowed red for a moment before it faded. As she cast, she focused on what she wanted the boy to do. She watched as the boy's eyes shifted from his mother to her tea and back. When his mother looked away, he grabbed his glass and poured its contents over a half-empty cup of tea.

Harry heard the woman shriek, but didn't pay any more attention to her victim and his mother. Instead she looked at Tom for a report on her progress.

"Your compulsion was subtle for a first attempt, but not very strong. If the boy's mother hadn't looked away for a moment, he would not have done it. Try increasing your magic output next time." Tom coached.

And so she cast the spell again and again, each time getting better with Tom's suggestions. It was rather fun. She made the muggles do silly things like pick their noses, say rude things, and sing silly songs. Eventually, she moved on to more complex things, like forcing a woman to follow a man and seduce him in an alley while she and Tom watched from a safe distance. She also convinced one man to give her all the money in his wallet, and another man she convinced to steal a pair of lacy knickers.

"This is fun." The young witch chirped while watching a woman put a skirt around her neck and continue as if she hadn't done anything out of the ordinary. They had been at it for several hours, changing locations periodically to avoid rousing any suspicion. Currently they were in a department store.

"I too quite enjoy making muggles make fools out of themselves." Tom agreed. "Unfortunately it's quite illegal. Too many idiots were obvious in their torment of muggles and the ministry stepped in to maintain secrecy."

"...You say it's unfortunate that it's illegal, but it's not like it's going to stop you, or you care about breaking the law." Harry pointed out. Tom waved his hand in dismissal and changed the topic.

"Your compulsion charms are satisfactory for the moment. You seem to grasp the subtlety quite easily, and the strength of them isn't poor, but I believe you can do better. You are done with practising them on muggles—you won't improve any further with just them. We'll return to the mutt's place and you can practice on Longbottom and the Weasley children. They shouldn't realize what you are doing." he said.

The jade eyed witch groaned. She almost forgot that Weasleys and Longbottom would be joining them at her godfather's house. At least they would prove useful.

"We should return soon. It's almost time for dinner." Tom said. "And I believe your friend has been left alone with your godfather long enough. I quite pity the girl."

"Do we have to? I'm sure Hermione would forgive me." Harry pleaded.

Tom merely held out his arm. His younger partner reluctantly took it and with a cracking sound, they were gone.

-x-

"What are _you_ doing here?" Ronald Weasley sneered when Harry and Tom walked into the Black family home. The ginger was standing in the entryway, just outside the closed kitchen door with Neville, his sister and the twins, one of which had started shoving something in his pocket when the front door started to open.

"I should be asking _you_ that, Weasley, considering this house belongs to _my _godfather." Harry sneered while Tom looked on in amusement.

"I can't believe Dumbledore thought living with _them_ constituted as a safe house..." Neville muttered to the glowering redhead, who nodded. "They'd probably hand us over to you-know-who at the drop of a hat."

"Neville!" Ginny hissed. She puffed up and glared at the boy. "Harry wouldn't do that—that monster murdered her parents!"

"And yet she hangs off his grandson like he's the only person in the world." Ron retorted while Neville shrank back under the fiery witch's rage.

"You do realize people don't always agree with their family, right?" Harry rolled her eyes, a hand on her hip. "Which is pretty well evidenced by the fact that you're arguing with your sister."

Before the Gryffindors could retort, the door behind them burst open, revealing the Weasley matriarch. When she saw her children lingering outside the door her eyes narrowed.

"You lot have better not been trying to listen in on the meeting again!" she warned.

"Of course not, mum." One of the twins said, while her other offspring and Neville nodded.

"Oh? Then what were you doing out here?" She pressed.

"We heard someone come in and decided to see who it was." Ginny piped up innocently. The boy's nodded in agreement. However the youngest Weasley wasn't finished. "But Neville and Ron started to mouth off to Harry and Mr. Riddle, saying they'd hand us all over to you-know-who."

"Ronald Billius Weasley! Neville Franklin Longbottom!" Mrs. Weasley screeched. Ginny wisely manoeuvred herself behind her mother as she lectured the glaring Gryffindors. She stuck her tongue out at them and stifled giggles. The redhead wasn't usually much of a tattle tale (she learned early on it only served to make things more difficult for her), but she figured it served them right for being gits.

"Thanks, Weasley." Harry said to the younger girl as she followed Tom into the kitchen.

Ginny blushed.

-x-

"Ah, Harry, Tom." Dumbledore greeted as the couple entered the kitchen. Order members seemed to be bustling about, preparing to leave, but the headmaster was seated at the head of the table. "I trust your excursion was fruitful?"

"Yes, sir." Harry nodded and casually raised her wand a bit to show it to him. "I'm quite pleased with my new wand."

"Excellent. I was wondering if I could speak to you in private, if you don't mind?" he requested. Harry hesitantly glanced at Tom, and Dumbledore smoothly added, "Tom can join you, of course."

"Alright." the young witch agreed with a shrug.

"Sirius, my boy! Could you possibly direct young Harry, Tom and myself to a place we can speak in private?" It was phrased as a request, but the dog animagus knew it was an order.

"Of course, Albus. The library should work. Do you mind if I join you?" Sirius grinned as he stood up and sauntered over to the trio. "As her godfather, I think I should be there for this kind of stuff."

"That is quite alright, Sirius." Dumbledore declined. "I believe I know where to find the library, so the three of us shall take our leave."

Once the three of the them made it to the Black library, Dumbledore cast a privacy ward and directed the couple to sit at the table in the centre of the room. As the Slytherin couple took seats at the wooden chairs next to each other, the professor transfigured his own seat into a plush armchair—after sitting on hard, wooden chairs he tended to feel like a centaur trampled his back, you see.

"What did you need to speak to me about, Professor?" Harry asked.

"I have a request for you, Harry." Dumbledore hedged. "However, I am aware it is quite intrusive."

"I won't guarantee an agreement, but I'm willing to listen to it." the teen witch said bluntly. Tom's eyes narrowed at the headmaster, but he remained silent.

"First of all, I assume you told Tom about the discussion we had at the end of your first year?" Harry nodded, trying to appear guilty.

"Sorry, sir."

"That's is quite alright, Harry. I would have been more surprised if you had not." The headmaster said gently. "I ask, because the conversation we had is relevant to my request."

"How so?" Harry furrowed her brow. The prophecy had little to do with her, so what could the old man want?

"As it is up to Neville to ultimately defeat Voldemort, I was hoping you would let him and the Order view your memory of his resurrection."

"No." Harry said immediately. It was incredibly incriminating. A lot of the spells she used in the duel were highly illegal, but more importantly, they would see her discussing Tom's true nature with the Dark Lord.

"I know it was quite traumatizing for you, Harry, but I must impart on you the seriousness of the situation." the headmaster argued gently but firmly. "This would be a great help in preparing Neville to face Voldemort. There might have also been things that happened or were said that you didn't realize were relevant."

"No." Harry repeated. She glanced at Tom, but he was staring intently at the headmaster and not paying her any mind. She followed his gaze to the frowning headmaster.

"May I inquire as to your reasoning?" he asked gently.

"I—" Harry licked her lips and peeked at her partner once more. The elder Slytherin gave a barely perceivable nod. "I may have done some things that many in the order would likely... disapprove of. Things that they don't need to know about." The young girl took a deep breath. "I also may have... discussed some things with Voldemort that the order really doesn't need to hear about."

"I see" Dumbledore titled his head back slightly and sighed. "Very well then, I completely understand—"

"If I may, Albus," Tom interrupted. "I believe there is a suitable compromise to be had. For a small favour in return, of course."

Harry's head whipped in Tom's direction. What the hell was he thinking? He _knew_ what she had done and said in graveyard! How could he think sharing it with the narrow minded witches and wizards that made up the vigilante group was a good idea?

The elder wizard peered at Tom over his half moon spectacles, intrigued, but wary of what the faux-blond would ask for. "Is that so?"

"Indeed." Tom pasted the fake, charming smile Harry hated on his face. "I'm well aware of Harriet's actions and the events that occurred in the graveyard. And as far as I am aware, nothing was said that you haven't already figured out on your own. Of course _you_ won't judge Harriet for the magic she used to defend herself, since we have already established that contrary to popular belief, you have nothing against the so called "dark arts". And I'm sure you can forgive the use of the more nasty spells in the context they were used, or am I wrong?"

"You are correct. I presume you intend to let myself alone view the memory?" Dumbledore extrapolated.

"That is correct." Tom inclined his head, his false smile morphing into a smirk.

"And what is it you would like in return?" Dumbledore knew it wasn't going to be something he would normally do or permit. The former horcrux was offering something valuable. Neville may not be able to see the dark lord in action himself, but if Albus knew how strong Voldemort was after his return—if he was stronger, weaker, or about the same as he was before Harry destroyed his body—and the way the shell of a man acted in the memory, it would help him determine Voldemort's thought processes and give him an idea of how to go about preparing Neville for the inevitable confrontation. It was a shame that though the two shared a soul and a past, Tom and Voldemort were in many regards very different.

"Don't sound so worried, Albus." Tom glanced at Harry. "I'm not asking for much in return. Really, it's nothing that makes much difference in the great scheme of things. All I want is for you to let Harriet here sit in on the order meetings."

The headmaster's eyebrows rose in surprise. It indeed was a minor thing. He was well aware that Tom would be telling her everything that was discussed in meetings regardless, and though she was underage and they generally did not allow anyone who had yet to finish school, with her history it wouldn't be too hard to convince the order it was necessary to make an exception. After all, she had defeated Voldemort as a baby and faced him again mere weeks ago. She was a target, and one of the few to escape from the dark lord himself alive after he decided on their death.

"Very well." The old wizard acquiesced. "Consider it done. I shall induct Harry along with yourself at the next meeting."

"Excellent." Tom twirled his wand in his hand as he faced the subject of their bargain. "Harriet, dear, I trust you have no objections?"

"No." Harry murmured with wide eyes. She wasn't very happy with the idea of the headmaster seeing her memory, but being included in the order was appealing and if sharing it with the headmaster was what Tom dersired...

"Excellent. Then we have a deal." Tom stopped twirling his wand and stood. He conjured a small glass vial and gently pressed the tip of his yew wand to Harry's temple. "Now dearest, just focus on the memory and I shall do the rest."

-o-

AN:

... if you're sorry and you know clap your hands!

Well, first of all, I'd like to thank you all for 1000 reviews. I never dreamed that I would ever get so far. Thank you all so much.

Secondly, yeah, it's been like, what? Five, six months? Sorry about that. But I had finals in early December and then my health took a turn for the worse. And then a friend of mine died and I fell behind in class and even had to drop a couple classes. And then I had to get ready for finals... But I'm all done as of yesterday. My first year of university is complete! I don't know how I did this term yet, but as of last term I have a 4.0 GPA. **By the way, you can find the occasional progress report on my profile. **

This chapter IS kind of short, and I'm sorry about that, but that seemed like a good place to end it. I have to admit, I _did_ have most of this written (about 80 percent of it) for about four months, but I didn't want to post anything less than 4K words and was in the middle of a scene.

I have been doing some thinking and I'm really not too happy with my writing in this fanfic. I feel like the characterization is shallow, for one. Especially for Pansy, who isn't really developed much in canon besides being mean. So I'm going to try to develop the characters more. If there seems to be sudden changes in the coming chapters that is probably why. I think I want to make Pansy a bit meaner, especially in her gossip.

I also feel like I focus too much on dialogue. Do you guys think it's a bad thing? Or just a style thing? Personally I prefer stories with a lot of dialogue, so that's probably why... I am trying to be more descriptive though.

I'm not going to go back and rewrite anything. I don't have time, and honestly—this fanfic is a hobby. It's not something super serious. It's for fun. But I _will _try to do better in the future.

Thank you all so much for your support.

XO

Eliza

P.S. I'll try to update sooner next time

P.P.S. I think next chapter a certain marauder will have some screen time.


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